According to Statistics Canada, nearly one in two women and more and more than a third of men who responded to a recent study say they have been sexually harassed or assaulted in their workplace.
According to study data released Tuesday, 43.8 per cent of Saskatchewan workers say they have experienced harassment in their workplace at some point.
Additionally, 30.9% of Saskatchewan respondents said they had been harassed at work in the 12 months preceding the survey. This figure ranks Saskatchewan last among other provinces for this segment of the survey.
These results place Saskatchewan with the third worst results in the country, behind Alberta and British Columbia.
Public education and awareness coordinator at the Regina Sexual Assault Centre, Chantelle Priel, says the organization has seen similar trends for a long time.
Seeing how high the numbers in this survey are [est]of course, devastating, but not surprising when you know you have a problem on your hands [en Saskatchewan]she says.
Statistics Canada also indicates that workplace harassment affects marginalized groups more, such as people with disabilities, women and Indigenous people.
According to Ms. Priel, this problem stems from forms of discrimination.
We can see how beliefs such as racism, sexism and homophobia manifest in society, and create […] microaggressions, the most common form of gender discrimination, she says.
Theresa Sokyrka, a singer-songwriter from Saskatoon, became known after being a finalist on the reality TV show Canadian Idol.
She says she was harassed at work when she was a waitress at a local restaurant.
The older I get, the more I realize how unsafe I was in many situations, says Theresa Sokyrka. I’m even surprised that I escaped unscathed, when I think of some of the situations I experienced.
In an email, the Saskatchewan Ministry of Labor Relations and Workplace Safety said any form of harassment in the workplace is unacceptable.
In recent years, additional provisions have been introduced to help create healthier and safer workplaces, it says.
In May 2023, the provincial government amended workplace health and safety provisions to require all employers to develop a violence prevention policy and investigate violent incidents.
Under these changes, Saskatchewan employers have until May 17, 2024 to create and implement their policies.
The education coordinator at the YWCA of Regina, Cecilia Rands, explains that in 2021, the organization launched a program to combat harassment and violence.
According to Ms. Rands, this program gives citizens the power to take a stand.
We want to somehow stop the problem before it starts. Rather than trying to react, we try to be proactive, says Cecilia Rands.
With the information of Shlok Talati
2024-02-15 14:48:42
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