Zero tolerance for sexual harassment

“Up to 55% of women in the EU have been sexually harassed. This has to stop. Women need to feel safe in any working environment, they need to know that they can come forward with their testimonies and that they will be protected from their offenders. This is why we call on the Member States and the European Institutions to take further measures to effectively end and prevent sexual harassment in the workplace”, declared Agnieszka Kozlowska-Rajewicz MEP, EPP Group Spokeswoman in the Women's Rights and Gender Equality Committee of the European Parliament, after the vote on the Joint Resolution on combating sexual harassment and abuse in the EU.

In 2014, the European Parliament created a committee to fight against harassment at work, chaired by Elisabeth Morin-Chartier MEP: “We are working on all the cases we receive, but we should now improve the activities of the committee on three points: release of testimonies, with a network of trusted people who will listen to the victims; set up a mediation service between the Institutions and the victims; and, finally, give more information to the Members and the staff”, she explained.

"Sexual harassment is violence against women recognised by the Istanbul Convention. We need to stop victim shaming and support women who speak out. It is also about stopping abuse of power by men in the working place and building a culture of respect for women. The time has come to go from words to action!", said Anna Maria Corazza Bildt, Co-Rapporteur on the EU accession of the Istanbul Convention.

“The EPP Group has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to discrimination. We strongly condemn all forms of sexual harassment and we are committed to continuing our fight against any kind of inequality between men and women in the workplace, like we have been doing for many years”, concluded the MEPs.