Workplace harassment in SMEs: the data and the KMU konkret+ project

Context

TL;DR

• Since COVID-19, reports in Swiss SMEs have increased.
• 44% of women report harassment at work.
• The harasser often holds a position of power.
• Eight services are launching the KMU konkret+ project.

Key facts

• Period → since COVID-19
• Women affected → 44% at least once during their careers
• Men affected → 17% at least once during their careers
• Companies most at risk → small and medium-sized enterprises
• People most at risk → apprentices, new hires and workers in insecure employment
• Project → KMU konkret+
• Target audience → companies with up to 250 employees

On October 20, 2026, the source reported a sharp increase in sexual harassment at work in small and medium-sized enterprises following the pandemic and with the return to the office. The observation comes from the equal opportunities offices of German-speaking Switzerland and is also reported by the Berner Zeitung.

Yet the phenomenon is more widespread than one might imagine: according to a study by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco), 44% of women and 17% of men have experienced sexual harassment at work at least once during their careers. Moreover, one employee in five would like their company to do more.

A problem related to power relations

“Harassment is still too often passed off as a flirt that went wrong or a distasteful compliment.”

Voloder observes that it is not only the harasser’s intention that matters: the consequences for the victim and the work group must also be considered. It is often someone with greater power, whether a supervisor, colleague or customer.

The source describes apprentices, new hires and workers in insecure employment as the most at risk. In these conditions, people subjected to harassing behavior may prefer to remain silent, especially when they believe that the person responsible is unlikely to face consequences. The picture presented therefore concerns both the prevalence of the phenomenon and the way hierarchical relationships can affect the possibility of speaking out and reacting.

Operational details

What the data and procedures show

The comparison between the Seco data is clear: 44% of women and 17% of men report having experienced sexual harassment at work at least once during their careers. The difference is 27 percentage points. This is a comparison between two groups over the same time period, not a change recorded from one year to the next. The cited study is not presented as a ranking among sectors or as a measure of SMEs alone.

Alongside these percentages is another indicator: one in five employees believes that their company should do more. The source places it alongside the figure for the people involved, showing that the issue concerns both those who experience harassment and the organizational response of companies.

Two aspects to be assessed separately

Victims can take action under employment law and criminal law. The article does, however, identify a company practice considered wrong: waiting for a judgment before taking measures. The two procedures, according to Voloder, must be assessed separately. The source does not establish an automatic link between a report and dismissal, nor does it present every ill-judged remark as sufficient grounds for ending an employment relationship.

For those who report, the text identifies evidence as decisive. The elements mentioned include messages, chat conversations, and detailed notes about what happened, specifying when and where it occurred. Thus, no single form of documentation is indicated, but rather a series of traces that can reconstruct the incident.

The everyday conduct of managers is also identified as part of the response. A policy posted on a bulletin board is not enough if those in charge then use vulgar language. Managers must intervene immediately and set a good example. Colleagues, on the other hand, can show concern by asking the person involved whether they would like to talk about it. If someone realizes that they have offended another person, the conduct indicated by the source is to apologize and not repeat the behavior.

Key points

The sectors mentioned and the response for SMEs

The Zeitung article focuses primarily on three sectors in which the issue is more pronounced due to the lack of prevention bodies: construction, industry and the hospitality sector. The source does not assign specific percentages to these areas or establish which records the highest number of cases. It presents them as sectors mentioned in the discussion of preventive shortcomings.

KMU konkret+

To fill the gap, the KMU konkret+ project was launched by eight equal-opportunity offices in German-speaking Switzerland, including that of the Canton of Bern. The initiative offers training, model regulations and advice to companies with up to 250 employees.

The project therefore directly targets the companies identified by the source as most at risk of neglecting the issue: SMEs. Its scope is defined both by the tools made available and by the size limit specified for the target companies. The source does not, however, provide data on companies’ participation, results already achieved or any reduction in reports following the launch.

The geographical context must be understood by distinguishing the article’s different references. The phenomenon is described as widespread throughout Switzerland, and the study’s data come from Seco. The observations on the increase in reports and the difficulties faced by companies, however, come from the equal-opportunity offices in German-speaking Switzerland, while the project also includes the office of the Canton of Bern.

No separate figures are provided by canton, sector or company size, nor are individual cases or court decisions described. The influence of positions of power, the greater exposure of apprentices, newly hired employees and precarious workers, and the need—identified by the source—for a corporate response that does not automatically wait until the end of criminal proceedings nevertheless remain documented.

Source: tio.ch