Everybody knows: The importance of speaking up about witnessed workplace harassment and discrimination

Since MeToo, light has been shed upon individual and societal consequences of workplace harassment and discrimination, and that at least 70% of victims fail to report it, but little is known about the role of witnesses in speaking up to support victims and contribute to healthier workplaces. An online survey of people who had witnessed workplace harassment or discrimination (n = 1147) was conducted to identify barriers and/or incentives to witness reporting, consequences of witness reporting, whether witness reporting mechanisms could or should be improved, and how to achieve this. The results revealed that incidents are often witnessed but seldom reported to HR by witnesses, although witnesses discuss them with colleagues. Barriers to reporting witnessed incidents, and consequences of experiencing them, overlap with those of victims, and consequences are worse when witnesses choose not to report. However, victim anonymity is compromised when witnesses discuss incidents without the victim’s permission. Nevertheless, reporting witnessed incidents has the potential to create a positive shared identity of support in workplaces. Thus, one step to healthier workplaces is to include witnesses in the fight against harassment and discrimination. A novel model of harassment reporting (HRM) is developed to examine existing approaches of witness reporting, and considerations for how to improve it are included.