A global survey jointly developed by Lloyd’s Register Foundation and the International Labour Organization (ILO) to identify peoples’ experiences and perceptions of violence and harassment at work, is now underway as part of the Lloyd’s Register Foundation World Risk Poll 2021, powered by Gallup.

The survey will explore the issue highlighted by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation World Risk Poll 2019, which indicated that violence and harassment is widespread in workplaces across the globe.

The previous poll confirmed that globally, 12% of workers said they, or someone they have worked with, experienced injury or harm from physical harassment or violence in the two years before the poll, while 17% named physical harassment or violence when asked about specific sources of risk to their safety when working.

While the 2019 polling was underway, at the Centenary Conference of the ILO, the Violence and Harassment Convention No. 190 and its accompanying Recommendation No. 206 were adopted to provide a common framework to prevent, remedy and eliminate this issue in the world of work, including gender-based violence and harassment. This constituted, for the first time in international law, the right of everyone to a world of work free from violence and harassment. The Convention enters into force on 25 June 2021.

Manuela Tomei, Director of the Conditions of Work and Equality Department, International Labour Organization said: “Statistics on violence and harassment in the world of work are sporadic and scarce. Comparability of data is problematic because different terminologies, concepts, definitions and methods are used, and under-reporting remains a global problem. As a worldwide study, the ILO- Lloyd’s Register Foundation World Risk Poll 2021 module on violence and harassment will shed some light on its prevalence and people’s own experiences with it. We hope that the results of this joint study will provide a better-informed impetus for action by the international community and relevant national institutions.”

Sarah Cumbers, Director of Evidence and Insight, Lloyd’s Register Foundation added: “Data from the World Risk Poll 2021 will provide information which can be used to support the formulation of targeted policy measures to prevent violence and harassment at work, and provide the necessary evidence to inform decisions made by country leaders to ratify Convention 190.”

More information on Lloyd’s Register Foundation’s work on violence and harassment can be found here.