Sexual Violence and Workplace Harassment: Prevention, Rights and a Legal Perspective
On 25 November 2025, we took part in the technical seminar “Sexual Violence in the Workplace: An Occupational Risk Prevention Approach”, organised by Spain’s National Institute for Safety and Health at Work (INSST) in Madrid.
A particularly relevant event that provided an opportunity to reflect on how to address sexual harassment and harassment on the grounds of sex in the workplace, not only by responding to situations that have already occurred, but also from a genuine perspective of prevention, rights protection, and the transformation of working environments.
Sexual Violence and Workplace Harassment Are Also Occupational Risks
The event was held within the framework of Objective 5 of the Spanish Occupational Safety and Health Strategy 2023–2027, which focuses on integrating a gender perspective into occupational risk prevention.
This approach is essential to understanding that sexual violence and harassment on the grounds of sex cannot be considered issues separate from the conditions in which work is carried out.
The Organic Law 10/2022 on the Comprehensive Guarantee of Sexual Freedom specifically strengthened the obligation to address sexual violence in the workplace as well, promoting prevention, awareness-raising, and protection measures.
However, translating these obligations into the day-to-day reality of companies and organisations requires going beyond formal compliance with the regulations.
The Legal Perspective on Sexual Harassment and Harassment on the Grounds of Sex
From Iniciativas de Justicia Transformadora, we took part in the panel dedicated to the legal perspective on sexual violence and harassment on the grounds of sex in the workplace, alongside Gemma Fabregat Monfort from the University of Valencia and Soraya Herrera Luque from the INSST.
Our contribution brought to the institutional debate the experience we have gained from the practical implementation of protocols for the prevention of and response to sexual harassment and harassment on the grounds of sex.
Because having a protocol in place is necessary, but not sufficient.
For these tools to genuinely protect people, they need to be known, accessible and applicable; there must be safe mechanisms for reporting situations of harassment; those with responsibilities within the organisation must know how to respond; and prevention must form part of the organisation’s culture.
From Harassment Protocols to Effective Prevention
One of the risks we encounter when working with organisations is that harassment protocols can become documents that are approved simply to fulfil an obligation and then remain disconnected from day-to-day reality.
Prevention requires precisely the opposite.
It involves examining power relations, identifying risk factors, incorporating a gender perspective, and creating environments in which people know how to recognise certain behaviours and have effective mechanisms in place to respond to them.
It also requires training, awareness-raising and appropriate procedures that safeguard the rights of everyone involved.
For this reason, we understand the prevention of sexual harassment and harassment on the grounds of sex as a process that should form part of a broader policy on equality, occupational health, and the protection of fundamental rights.
A Transformative Justice Perspective
Incorporating a transformative justice perspective into this field also means asking ourselves not only what we do when a conflict or situation of violence arises, but also which elements within an organisation may be enabling certain behaviours to emerge, become normalised or remain invisible.
Working from this perspective allows us to address the underlying causes, relationships and structures, placing reparation, accountability and the creation of safe working environments at the centre.
Participating in events such as this INSST seminar allows us to share this perspective and contribute to ensuring that the prevention of sexual harassment and harassment on the grounds of sex in the workplace is not limited to formal compliance with an obligation, but becomes a genuine safeguard of rights.
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