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5th May 2026
Men and Women View Sexual Harassment at Work Differently

How would you assess a situation in which a colleague greets a female co-worker by putting an arm around her waist? Or sends an erotic image to a colleague via work email? Attitudes towards sexually suggestive behaviour in the workplace may depend on gender: men are nearly twice as likely as women to justify such conduct. These findings were revealed by a representative public opinion survey commissioned by the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson’s Office.

According to the survey, while the majority of people in Lithuania condemn sexual harassment in the workplace, men and women tend to evaluate certain situations differently.

For example, nearly one in five surveyed men said they would justify a situation in which a colleague hugs a female co-worker around the waist, compared to only one in eight women. Meanwhile, 15 per cent of men considered sending an erotic image to a female colleague to be acceptable behaviour, whereas only 7 per cent of women shared this view.

he graph reflects how the presented behavior in the workplace is assessed by the gender of the study participants. The situation "Rytis hugs her around the waist when greeting a colleague" is assessed by 12 percent of women and 19 percent of men as completely or rather appropriate behavior at work, 78 percent of women and 64 percent of men as completely or rather inappropriate behavior, and 10 percent of women and 17 percent of men did not answer the question or did not know how to answer.

Respondents were also asked to evaluate a scenario in which a female colleague invites a male co-worker to lunch, adding that “it would be nice to finally spend some time alone together.” Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of surveyed men considered such a suggestion appropriate, while the share among women was almost twice lower, at 12 per cent.

The graph reflects how the presented behavior in the workplace is assessed by the gender of the study participants. The situation "Eglė invites a colleague to lunch together and adds that it would be nice to finally spend time together" is assessed by 12 percent of women and 24 percent of men as completely or rather appropriate behavior at work, 76 percent of women and 61 percent of men as completely or rather inappropriate behavior, and 11.5 percent of women and 15 percent of men did not answer the question or did not know how to answer.

The fewest respondents justified a manager offering a promotion in exchange for an intimate relationship. Overall, 82 per cent of respondents considered such behaviour inappropriate. However, nearly one in ten men (9 per cent) saw nothing wrong with it, compared to only 4 per cent of women.

The graph reflects how the presented behavior in the workplace is assessed by the gender of the study participants. The situation "Rytis hugs her around the waist when greeting a colleague" is assessed by 12 percent of women and 19 percent of men as completely or rather appropriate behavior at work, 78 percent of women and 64 percent of men as completely or rather inappropriate behavior, and 10 percent of women and 17 percent of men did not answer the question or did not know how to answer.

According to Mintautė Jurkutė, an expert at the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson’s Office, all of the hypothetical situations presented in the survey contain elements of sexual harassment, although their interpretation may differ depending on gender.

“It is encouraging that the majority of society demonstrated awareness regarding sexual harassment at work. On the other hand, the survey showed that men are more likely to downplay or normalise such behaviour. It is also worth noting that men more often than women reported not having a firm opinion about these situations,” she said.

According to the gender equality expert, such attitudes among some men may be influenced by stereotypes surrounding sexual harassment, such as the belief that it is harmless or even ‘provoked’ attention.

“It is important to stress that when assessing a possible case of harassment, priority should be given to the experience of the person subjected to such behaviour. In other words, consideration must be given to how the individual felt or could have felt as a result of the conduct, whether it was a colleague’s embrace or comments from a manager about appearance. If the behaviour is unwanted and causes negative emotions, it may already constitute sexual harassment,” the expert explained.

The graph reflects how the presented behavior in the workplace is assessed by the gender of the study participants. The situation "Povilas sends an erotic picture to his colleague" is assessed by 7 percent of women and 15 percent of men as completely or rather appropriate behavior at work, 84 percent of women and 74 percent of men as completely or rather inappropriate behavior, and 9 percent of women and 11 percent of men did not answer the question or did not know how to answer.

M. Jurkutė also reminded that, under equal opportunities legislation, employers are responsible for ensuring that employees do not experience sexual harassment at work. Survey results show that the public shares this expectation: eight out of ten respondents agreed that preventing sexual harassment is the employer’s responsibility. Employers are also obliged to properly investigate all allegations of possible sexual harassment.

Under the Labour Code, companies and institutions with more than 50 employees are required to adopt and implement policies on the prevention of violence and harassment. Sexual harassment in the workplace may also lead to criminal liability, although currently this applies only in cases where the perpetrator is a manager or supervisor.

The representative survey of Lithuanian residents was conducted on 13–22 December 2025 by Spinter Research at the request of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson’s Office. A total of 1,012 respondents aged 18 and over participated in the survey.

 The survey was carried out as part of the project “VIOLET – Workplaces Free from Sexual Harassment and Violence”. The project is co-funded by the European Union. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.