Any kind of gender division decreases productivity.
by Jody Dallaire
Sexism and harassment should not be part of anyone’s job description. We hear too often though that women experience gender discrimination at work.
You’ve heard the stories. Let’s recap, briefly.
A few years ago, the lone female graduate of a class of 60 electricians in New Brunswick had to go to Alberta to find work because she was not welcome by New Brunswick employers. Employers never considered her skills, because they were too concerned about her gender.
She outlined in the media what one out of many potential employers said to her: “I’m not having a 20-something-year-old girl running around here getting the attention from all the guys and creating problems with their wives and problems with my wife. So I’m not hiring any women.”
Last month, a sex scandal in the United States military came to light. Six out of the twelve male military instructors in Texas, responsible for training American military recruits, face investigations on sex-based charges. One instructor, Sgt Luis Walker, is being court marshaled. He faces several charges, including rape, aggravated sexual contact and aggravated sexual assault. In this case, 31 female trainees have been identified as victims.
An Australian study released last month found that sexist jokes and innuendo at work are bad for business.
A similar drama is unfolding with Canada’s own RCMP, an organization that is supposed to uphold the laws of the land, not break them. According to the RCMP’s web site, its vision statement says that the RCMP strives to be an organization that: “ensures a healthy work environment that encourages team building, open communication and mutual respect.”
Unfortunately, that vision doesn’t seem to include women.
Since November hundreds of female Mounties have come forward with their stories of sexual assault, sexual harassment and discrimination based on their gender. They are filing a class action lawsuit, and more than two hundred current and former female Mounties have added their names.
In some workplaces, women face harassment and violence not only from their co-workers or superiors but also from their clients or when it comes to the health care system from patients and their family. The New Brunswick Nurses Union (NBNU) has done a lot of work to raise awareness that nurses face violence in the workplace. The NBNU also details some of the changes to laws and policies required to diminish this prevalent problem. According to the NBNU’s membership survey, patients perpetrate most incidents of harsh language, verbal threats and physical harm.
These are blatant examples where women are either discriminated against, assaulted or harassed. But sometimes sexism is more subtle. Nevertheless, it still negatively affects productivity in the workplace. An Australian study released last month found that sexist jokes and innuendo at work are bad for business and that companies should adopt policies regarding “low level sexism”. The study’s author, Victor Rojo, is quoted as saying: “This has negative impact on the health and performance of female workers, and it creates a culture where it’s okay to be a bully.”
A Canadian study conducted in 2011 listed similar results. It found that non-harassing sexual behaviour in the workplace, no matter how harmlessly intended, reminds everyone of the traditional gender roles — subordination of women to men, women as objects — which women are likely to experience negatively, especially at work, where women are striving to be seen as colleagues, not as sexual objects.
This study concluded that even women and men who stated they enjoy sexual behaviour at work, saw their productivity diminished.
Sexism, harassment and mere sex-talk and innuendo have no place in the workplace and merely hinder everybody’s productivity. Such behaviour has been compared to junk food. Some may derive pleasure from it, but at a cost. It diminishes our energy levels and harms our health. So like junk food, sex-talk at work should not be a part of our regular diet.
We all have a role to play in diminishing gender stereotypes and sexism. When it comes to sexist comments, the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr ring true: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
About Jody Dallaire
Jody Dallaire lives and works in Dieppe New Brunswick where she writes a weekly column on women's equality issues and matters of social justice.
Email: jody.dallaire@rogers.com.
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