The report reveals how a combination of precarious contracts, sexualisation of service work and the workforce’s demographics have contributed to making hospitality workers more vulnerable to workplace sexual harassment.
Dr Bob Jeffrey, lead author of the research from Sheffield Hallam University, said: “We’ve all seen the headlines over the last year about issues of sexual harassment in the fast-food industry. Our research helps to explain why it's such a problem, not just in fast-food, but across the hospitality sector.
“Part of the reason for this is the hospitality industry having the largest percentage of zero-hour contracts, which makes it too easy for perpetrators in positions of authority to cut the hours of those who try and speak out."
Researchers interviewed hospitality workers from South Yorkshire, as part of a wider study on low paid and precarious work. Sexual harassment and unwanted sexual attention were mentioned by a significant number of interviewees.
The report highlights how the hospitality workforce is disproportionately young, female, from a minoritised background, on zero hours contracts and on the lowest rates of pay.
All of which make them more vulnerable to sexual harm, with workers on precarious contracts 60 per cent more likely to report being a victim of sexual harassment, and women generally reporting sexual harassment rates twice as high as men.
Findings showed that several of the women interviewed were harassed by their manager or supervisor, who used their position of authority and responsibility for their working patterns to harass them and control their working lives.
One of the interviewees, Isabella*, worked in fast-food and was harassed by an older manager when she was just 17: “He was around 26 at the time. He told me that he was younger than that, he told me that he was 21. And he would start asking me weird questions, about my personal life, about my boyfriend, like weird sexual questions.
“He’d put himself on break at the same time as me, say these things to me. When I turned 18, I started to go out and go on nights out in town. He’d follow, he’d go, and he’d show his face, and just- It was getting really, really bad. And this was going on for a few years.”
Several women also reported being sexually harassed by customers, with women being objectified for the entertainment of predominantly male customers, recruitment processes that specify ‘attractiveness’ and the normalisation of such behaviour as being ‘part of the job’.
Workers are expected to perform friendliness and subservience to customers which in some cases was misinterpreted as sexual interest. Staff are also incentivised to tolerate sexual interactions through reliance on tips and good reviews.
Hannah* worked in a theme bar where women had to wear a revealing outfit, management insisted she had to wear the costume or leave the job.
“I also didn’t like the attention that I was getting because of the outfit that I was wearing. Guys were groping at me, and I just didn’t like it. I’m all for chat-up lines and people trying to flirt, but some of the stuff they were coming out with, it was just too crude. I’m guessing they thought I would accept that type of behaviour and language because of how I was dressed.”
Hannah also told researchers about an incident where a customer grabbed her: “I was serving him a drink and he passed me the money. I’d gone to take the money out of his hand and he actually grabbed my hand. And I was like, “Can you let go please?” and he was just staring at me.”
Across the sector there were low levels of reporting of sexual harassment and mostly poor outcomes for those who did report. Many people who were interviewed felt they were not believed, were gaslighted or were punished for making a complaint.
Several women in the report described being dismissed if they did complain, with responses from managers such as “are you sure it’s like that? Maybe he just likes you” and “you’re just being sensitive.”
Others felt that there was nobody to report harassment to, either because the perpetrator was their manager, or they were employed by an agency, and it was unclear who could help.
Victim-survivors of sexual harassment were likely to be psychologically or physically harmed due to their experience and a significant number left or lost their job. This number was higher for women and victims were more likely to leave their jobs than perpetrators.
The report notes that there are also low levels of unionisation in hospitality, only 3-4 per cent of the workforce, and a high staff turnover means it is difficult for employees to put up a fight to improve working conditions.
