In 2016 the TUC and Everyday Sexism Project collaborated on research into sexual harassment at work. “Still just a bit of banter?” found that 52% of all women who responded to their survey had experienced some form of sexual harassment at work, with over a third being the subject of unwelcome jokes of a sexual nature and nearly a quarter experiencing unwanted touching. In hospitality, Unite union’s ongoing #NotOnTheMenu survey shows that 9/10 workers of all genders have experienced some form of sexual harassment, and 84% have experienced unwanted touching.
We knew the figures in hospitality would be high – but we also knew that it would be harder for hospitality workers to speak about the abuse they face on a daily or nightly basis because of the nature of the trade. Hospitality is a £130bn industry, and it is propped up by a predominantly young and migrant workforce, many of whom are on zero hours contracts, often paid barely above the minimum wage. It is a sector where unions are essentially absent, with fewer than 5% of the hospitality workforce being a member of a union and fewer than 3% of workers covered by a collectively bargained agreement. Looked at another way, in the fourth largest industry in the UK under 3% of workers have a say in the terms and conditions they work under. Under 3% of workers have some formalised, negotiated input on what their jobs look like on a day to day basis – and, crucially, a say on what the policies and codes of conduct that are meant to protect them look like in their workplace.
