Report into #metoo shows gender discrimination widespread at work

A major new report from Young Women’s Trust has found that, despite the #MeToo movement and reforms including gender pay gap reporting, millions of women continue to lose out in the workplace – and mental health inequalities have got worse. 

The survey of 4,000 young people shows that, nearly a year on from #MeToo, a third of young women do not know how to report sexual harassment at work and a quarter would be reluctant to do so for fear of losing their job. 

Sexual harassment is still a problem for young women

The figures make depressing reading:

1. 15% of young women (some 800,000 young women), have been sexually harassed at work and not reported it - this double the number of women who have experienced it and reported it (eight per cent).

2. A third of young women (32% per cent) say they don’t know how to report sexual harassment.

3. One in five young women (18 %) say that they are too scared to report sexual harassment at work and a quarter of young women (24 %) would be reluctant to report sexual harassment for fear of losing their job, or fear of being given fewer hours (17%). 

The survey also raises issues about debt, mental health and unequal pay.

Young Women’s Trust chief executive Dr Carole Easton OBE said: 

“Sadly, even a hundred years after the first women gaining the power to vote, it’s still a rich man’s world. Young women continue to lack workplace power and spending power. 

“Our annual survey shows that young women’s treatment at work, pay and wellbeing are trailing far behind those of young men. 

“If 2018 is to be a turning point for women’s equality and not just a footnote in history, then it’s clear that we need deeds, not just words. We need to be impatient for change: a lot has been achieved in the last 100 years but there’s still a long way to go.”