The social change sparked by the #MeToo movement has not translated to the UK’s financial sector, with sexual harassment merely shifting outside the office to conferences and work trips, MPs have heard.
A summary of private hearings held as part of the Treasury committee’s sexism in the City inquiry showed that, while a small number of women said workplaces had become more inclusive in recent years, the majority felt the Square Mile was still an “old boys’ club” with misconduct and misogyny widespread.
The women who gave evidence to MPs said that sexist “banter” had become “more underhand and pernicious”.
MPs were left with the impression that the #MeToo movement had failed to influence change across City firms, with most women who appeared in front of the hearing in November saying that sexual harassment remained commonplace, having either directly experienced harassment or knowing colleagues who had.
The movement gathered pace in 2017 as women in all industries across the world began sharing personal stories of sexual harassment on social media.
In the committee’s evidence, the women interviewed said the big difference since then was that perpetrators were targeting women on work outings, including conferences and drinks events, or while on work trips.
Male colleagues who witnessed inappropriate behaviour were often privately supportive of victims but would rarely call it out, or take steps to intervene. They only helped victims avoid those known to act badly, rather than tackling the behaviour head-on, the interviewees said.
Women also said they thought that non-disclosure agreements – or gagging orders – were still widely used to make problems “go away” and to avoid damaging firms’ reputations. It had the effect of silencing victims, ensuring that they could not share their experience, and ultimately removing an incentive for firms to take action to prevent sexual harassment.
And while there had been a drop in overt sexism in the workplace including sexist “office banter”, women thought that misogynistic mindsets were still widespread, with behaviour having instead become “more underhand and pernicious”, the committee said.
Although some said younger male colleagues were often more supportive, they quickly tried to emulate the behaviour of older, more successful staff. That included taking part in a drinking culture, which often put pressure on non-drinkers to take part in order to fit in. However, these were also the kinds of events where the worst behaviour towards women was reported.
The women who shared their experience put forward recommendations to tackle continuing sexism, including making sure pay and bonuses are more closely tied to diversity and inclusion efforts, and requiring firms to report on the number of gagging orders used in sexual misconduct cases.
They are also calling for credible threats or fines and penalties for perpetrators or those condoning sexual misconduct, as well as ensuring regulators review sexual misconduct when determining whether employees are “fit and proper” to take senior roles.
MPs are expected to ask City regulators how they plan to protect women in the industry when the Financial Conduct Authority chief executive, Nikhil Rathi, and the Prudential Regulation Authority boss, Sam Woods, appear in front of the committee on Wednesday afternoon.
