Workplace Sexual Harassment: The Invisible Epidemic

“I used to work for a company based in Tehran. One day, when I was working late and I had to stay after all of my colleagues had left, the CEO, who was twice my age, suddenly entered the room I was in and locked the door,” recalls a 39 year-old Iranian woman who wanted to remain anonymous. “I begged him to leave me alone but instead he covered my mouth with his hand and raped me. I was a virgin at the time.”

Thirteen years have passed since that day, but up until now, the only person to have heard that story is her doctor.

Sexual harassment is a common occurrence in Iran; many Iranian women experience it at least once in their lifetimes in the workplace, even if they never speak about it. Contrary to popular belief, sexual harassment encompasses much more than just rape and sexual assault. Unwanted touching, unwelcome letters or emails, phone calls or text messages, looks suggesting a sexual undertone, jokes, comments, unwanted personal questions or gifts, spreading rumors about a person’s sex life and many other experiences fall under the category of harassment.

“Unlike sexual harassment on the street, where the victim doesn’t tend to know the perpetrator, sexual harassment within families is limited because family life is based on intimacy and couples’ generally having strong feelings for each other,” says Mehrdad Darvishpour, a sociologist based at Mälardalen University in Sweden. “But sexual harassment in the workplace is different in that it falls somewhere between these two different kinds.”

Darvishpour explains how workplace sexual harassment is an everyday problem around the world but that “it’s worse in Iran because of greater gender inequality and segregation, anti-women ideology, and sexual restrictions placed on women in society.“

According to the UN gender inequality index, Iran ranks 109 of 152 countries, giving an indication of some of the difficulties Iranian women face in terms of  discriminatory laws against females in Iran. For instance, women receive harsher punishments than men for many crimes, the fact that male testimonies are given more credence and weight than female ones and many other things.

One of the complexities of sexual assaults in the workplace is that victims feel they are powerless. This is because perpetrators tend to be older and, often, in a superior role at the workplace in question. This makes it difficult for victims to complain or report their ordeals.

“Generally, workplace sexual harassment is one of the most harmful and complex types because victims tend to know the person responsible, which means they often feel dependent on their aggressor in the sense that they’re afraid to lose their jobs or damage their careers,” says Darvishpour. “Therefore, victims don’t usually report or talk about the harassment they’ve experienced with other people. The situation is even worse in Iran because the law and culture is inherently misogynistic.”

“I used to work as a secretary at a private company and my boss at the time used to call me ‘honey,’ which made me really uncomfortable,” says Mahnaz, a young Iranian lady from Tehran. ”Then, one time, he leaned over my desk towards me and when his face was close to mine, I grabbed my purse and left the office. I never went back. Since then, I’ve worked at a company run by my father’s friend.” 

In more extreme cases, male bosses or supervisors threaten to fire female employees if they refuse to start a sexual relationship with them. Other women are told they will be rewarded or get a pay rise if they become sexually involved with a specific person.

“I left my job at Iran TV (IRIB) because so many of the film producers asked me for sexual favors and when I refused, they didn’t give me jobs,” explains Sara N. “I didn’t complain about it because when one of my colleagues reported it to security at IRIB, not only was her case dismissed but she herself was accused of debauchery.”

The majority of victims feel unsafe reporting incidents of sexual harassment, which is why so many women choose to remain quiet. Additionally, many victims harbour fears of being judged, being branded as a troublemaker or as immoral, and feelings of shame.

What’s more, public attitudes towards harassment in Iran are frequently intolerant of victims and in many cases actually blame victims rather than perpetrators. Worse still is when victims find the courage to come forward and speak up about their ordeal but their story is dismissed. 

In Iran, there is no legal provision for dealing with sexual harassment or assault in the workplace. This also means that the country lacks official reports regarding the number of sexual harassment complaints in Iran, effectively rendering the cases invisible.

“Iranian women are aware that society, the courts and organizations do not support them, so they usually don’t file complaints,” says Darvishpour. “If a victim is brave enough to stand up to misogynist culture and open a case in court or via an official organization, not only does she not have any chance of winning her case but her reputation will also be damaged. Therefore, most women prefer to stay clear, either by leaving their job or remaining a victim for the rest of their lives.”

Neither of these options is acceptable, though. It is therefore time that the Iranian authorities, officials and society at large begins to view harassment in the workplace as a serious issue. They must listen to victims, support them with new legislation and above all, firmly place the blame where it belongs, on the perpetrators and not on the victims. As these things begin to change, victim confidence to step forward and report what happened to them will grow and gradually, things will begin to change for the better. 

Related articles:

Unsafe Environment: Sexual Harassment at Work

My Colleagues Preferred a Silent Victim

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