By 
Despite the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements bringing the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace to the forefront, it’s still a prevalent in many industries, including, surprisingly, the legal industry.
Even more interestingly, is that for women in law, the higher they climbed the corporate ladder, the more they experienced or witnessed sexual harassment or sexual misconduct at work.
According to a survey of 4,763 women across 5 industries, done by FTI Consulting & Mine The Gap, women in law experienced sexual harassment or sexual misconduct in the last five years nearly as often as the total average across all the industries surveyed. The average across all the industries was 27% while the average across women in law in particular was 26%.
More in depth statistics from the survey reveal:
20% experienced unwanted touching at work in the last year.
10% witnessed a colleague deal with unwanted touching at work in the last year.
26% experienced sexual harassment or sexual misconduct at work in the last five years.
Of those that experienced sexual harassment or sexual misconduct at work in the last five years 11% reported in and 15% did not.
7% witnessed colleagues deal with sexual harassment or sexual misconduct at work in the last five years and reported it.
4% witnessed colleagues deal with sexual harassment or sexual misconduct at work in the last five years and did not report it.
In an article from Above The Law, further notes that of the women in law who experienced or witnessed unwanted touching at work in the last five years:
25% were entry level women.
33% were senior level women.
Therefore, as the women in law climb the corporate ladder, they appear to be experiencing or witnesses more sexual harassment and sexual misconduct at work.
According to the survey, the top 3 reasons why women in law did not report sexual harassment or sexual misconduct at work:
46% selected that they did not want it to negatively impact their career.
38% selected that they did not want to be viewed as a difficult employee.
38% selected that they feared retribution.
Women in law who possess the drive to climb the corporate ladder may have more fear about losing the status or reputations they’ve spent years developing if they were to report an incident.
Who are women in law reporting incidents of sexual harassment or sexual misconduct to at work?
38% reported it to their immediate supervisor.
21% reported it to their Human Resources manager.
Of the women in law who experienced or witnessed sexual harassment or sexual misconduct in the last five years and did report it also spoke to a lawyer:
25% decided to take legal action.
15% decided against taking legal action.
Of the women in law who experienced or witnessed sexual harassment or sexual misconduct in the last five years and who did report it, the top 3 resolutions were:
22% dismissal of the harasser.
20% no situation change.
20% dismissal of the harasser for reasons other than for sexual misconduct.
Even though these women work in law and understand their rights, they’re still experiencing average levels of sexual harassment and they is still a significant amount of women who do not report it out of fear for their career.
According to the survey, as a result of the #MeToo movement recognizing the pervasiveness of the issue, however, more than half of women (56%) will not apply to a company for employment if they had a public #MeToo issue.
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