Workplace Harassment in Forestry Organizations – Gendering the Experiences of Women and Men

Abstract

Based on a case study of one large company in the Swedish forest sector, this article explores the nature and practice of workplace harassment in forestry organizations. A questionnaire answered by 645 employees (92.5% response rate) shows that both women and men report experiences of harassment at work, although in different forms, with different frequencies and with different consequences. A total of 38% of women and 14% of men employed by the company report experiences of harassment at work. Both women and men most often experience verbal and psychological harassment by coworkers during day-to-day activities. However, unlike men, women also experience workplace harassment that takes place on and across a wider range of spatial and temporal relations and with various perpetrators involved. Also evident was that women respondents had a more negative perception of company culture and gender equality status compared with men, and the most negative perceptions were from women reporting experiences of harassment. Based on this case study, the article provides quantitative descriptions of workplace harassment experienced by women in Swedish forestry organizations that were previously explored from a qualitative perspective. This article also adds new insights into the existence of workplace harassment in forestry organizations that is not of a sexual nature and that not only women but also men report.