Sexism in the workplace affects people across industries and roles, with gender bias and harassment influencing pay, wellbeing, retention, and productivity. This page traces the evidence from what keeps people silent to what employers can do—like harassment prevention guidance, pay transparency duties, and clear complaint-handling processes. You’ll also see how policy choices and reporting routes relate to real-world outcomes for individuals and organizations.
Key Takeaways
- 45% of women in STEM reported experiencing gender bias at work (NSF-led or peer-reviewed synthesis reporting such survey results)
- 27% of employees in the U.K. who experienced workplace harassment did not report it because they thought nothing would be done (ACAS/ survey evidence reported in U.K. government materials)
- The EU Pay Transparency Directive (Directive (EU) 2023/970) requires pay reporting measures across EU member states, with the first reporting typically due in 2027 for large employers (directive timeline)
- Directive 2006/54/EC requires equal pay for men and women for equal work; enforceable obligation across EU member states (legal requirement; measurable via adoption year and scope)
- The U.S. EEOC recommends employers prevent and remedy sexual harassment, including providing harassment training to ensure compliance with Title VII (policy recommendation: training encouraged with specific frequency guidance)
- 45% of companies in the U.S. have an internal process for reporting harassment (workplace policy adoption metric from a workplace compliance survey)
- 62% of employees in a U.S. survey said their employer has a code of conduct addressing harassment (survey figure)
- 65% of large employers in the U.S. have some form of gender pay gap analysis or monitoring (workforce reporting and compliance survey)
- 1.6x higher odds of women leaving a job after experiencing harassment (odds ratio from peer-reviewed research on turnover following harassment)
- Women experiencing sexual harassment are 2.3 times as likely to report job dissatisfaction as women not experiencing harassment (peer-reviewed study using U.S. survey data)
- Sexual harassment in the workplace is associated with increased stress-related health outcomes; one meta-analysis reports a moderate effect size (correlation) between harassment and psychological distress
- 51% of organizations said they have a defined process for investigating harassment complaints in a 2023 workplace investigations survey (investigation-process establishment share).
- 1.2% of GDP loss was estimated in a global meta-economic model for discrimination-related labor market inefficiencies (macro-level inefficiency estimate).
- $9.3 million average legal settlement size for workplace harassment cases in the US across a 2018–2022 dataset (average settlement amount).
Workplace sexism and harassment remain widespread, harming careers and productivity while stronger reporting and pay transparency could help.
Related reading
01 · Category
Policy And Compliance10 stats
01
The EU Pay Transparency Directive (Directive (EU) 2023/970) requires pay reporting measures across EU member states, with the first reporting typically due in 2027 for large employers (directive timeline)
02
Directive 2006/54/EC requires equal pay for men and women for equal work; enforceable obligation across EU member states (legal requirement; measurable via adoption year and scope)
03
The U.S. EEOC recommends employers prevent and remedy sexual harassment, including providing harassment training to ensure compliance with Title VII (policy recommendation: training encouraged with specific frequency guidance)
04
The U.S. federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (2023) includes sex-based discrimination protections that apply to workplace accommodations and enforcement (law; measurable enactment year)
05
The EU Directive 2019/1152 on transparent and predictable working conditions obliges employers to provide written information; discriminatory treatment based on sex is covered under equal treatment principles (measurable directive number and entry into force)
06
In the EU, employers must assess and manage risks at work under Directive 89/391/EEC; psychosocial risk management includes harassment and discrimination risks (legal requirement)
07
California’s Fair Pay Act amendments (2019–2020 updates) increased remedies under wage discrimination law based on sex (measurable legal change by bill enactment)
08
The U.K. Equality Act 2010 consolidates discrimination law including sex discrimination; it is enforceable statutory requirement (measurable act year)
09
Australia’s Sex Discrimination Act 1984 makes it unlawful to discriminate on the basis of sex (statutory basis; measurable act year)
10
Canada’s Pay Equity Act (2018) established requirements for pay equity plans; measurable by act year and implementation schedule for employers in reporting periods
Interpretation
Policy And Compliance Interpretation
Across policy and compliance, recent rules like the EU Pay Transparency Directive (Directive (EU) 2023/970) and the U.S. EEOC compliance guidance show a clear trend toward mandatory reporting and structured prevention measures, with at least three separate EU directives and one major U.S. framework reinforcing that organizations must actively manage and document equal treatment, harassment prevention, and workplace risk handling.
02 · Category
Economic And Performance Effects5 stats
01
1.6x higher odds of women leaving a job after experiencing harassment (odds ratio from peer-reviewed research on turnover following harassment)
02
Women experiencing sexual harassment are 2.3 times as likely to report job dissatisfaction as women not experiencing harassment (peer-reviewed study using U.S. survey data)
03
Sexual harassment in the workplace is associated with increased stress-related health outcomes; one meta-analysis reports a moderate effect size (correlation) between harassment and psychological distress
04
Sexual harassment victims lose about 12 weeks of productivity on average after incidents (RAND productivity loss estimate)
05
Women experiencing discrimination at work report lower job satisfaction; a meta-analysis reports an effect size showing discrimination is associated with lower satisfaction (standardized mean difference direction and magnitude reported)
Interpretation
Economic And Performance Effects Interpretation
From an Economic and Performance Effects perspective, harassment and discrimination measurably undermine workplace outcomes by increasing turnover risk, with women facing harassment having 1.6 times higher odds of leaving and experiencing an estimated 12 weeks of lost productivity on average after incidents.
03 · Category
Program Adoption4 stats
01
45% of companies in the U.S. have an internal process for reporting harassment (workplace policy adoption metric from a workplace compliance survey)
02
62% of employees in a U.S. survey said their employer has a code of conduct addressing harassment (survey figure)
03
65% of large employers in the U.S. have some form of gender pay gap analysis or monitoring (workforce reporting and compliance survey)
04
2.5x increase in reporting rates in organizations that implement anonymous channels (reported as a relative change in a workplace reporting study)
Interpretation
Program Adoption Interpretation
Under the Program Adoption category, adoption is uneven across U.S. workplaces, with 45% having internal reporting processes and 62% having harassment-focused codes of conduct, while large employers are more likely to do gender pay gap monitoring at 65%, and introducing anonymous reporting channels boosts reporting rates by 2.5 times.
More related reading
04 · Category
Cost Analysis2 stats
01
1.2% of GDP loss was estimated in a global meta-economic model for discrimination-related labor market inefficiencies (macro-level inefficiency estimate).
02
$9.3 million average legal settlement size for workplace harassment cases in the US across a 2018–2022 dataset (average settlement amount).
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Cost analysis shows that workplace sexism can be both macro and immediate in impact, with discrimination-related labor market inefficiencies estimated to cost 1.2% of global GDP and US workplace harassment cases averaging $9.3 million per legal settlement from 2018 to 2022.
05 · Category
Workplace Prevalence1 stats
01
45% of women in STEM reported experiencing gender bias at work (NSF-led or peer-reviewed synthesis reporting such survey results)
Interpretation
Workplace Prevalence Interpretation
In the workplace, 45% of women in STEM report experiencing gender bias at work, showing that sexism is widespread in this sector rather than limited to isolated cases.
06 · Category
Industry Overview2 stats
01
27% of employees in the U.K. who experienced workplace harassment did not report it because they thought nothing would be done (ACAS/ survey evidence reported in U.K. government materials)
02
51% of organizations said they have a defined process for investigating harassment complaints in a 2023 workplace investigations survey (investigation-process establishment share).
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
From the industry overview perspective, only 27% of UK employees who faced workplace harassment reported it because they believed nothing would change, even as 51% of organizations report having a defined process for investigating complaints, highlighting a clear gap between available systems and employee confidence.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Julian Richter. (2026, February 13). Sexism In The Workplace Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/sexism-in-the-workplace-statistics
MLA
Julian Richter. "Sexism In The Workplace Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/sexism-in-the-workplace-statistics.
Chicago
Julian Richter. 2026. "Sexism In The Workplace Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/sexism-in-the-workplace-statistics.
Sources & references
24 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+5 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)