"Man vaktar sin tunga” En kvalitativ fallstudie av hur ett tillverkande industriföretag hanterar sexuella trakasserier före och efter #metoo

Abstract

In 2017 a culture of sexual harassment was brought to attention by the #metoo movement in many different types of workplaces all over the world. In Sweden this led to political initiatives regarding the work environment which included an investigation for sanctions against the employers who does not follow the Swedish Discrimination Act. In spite of the employer’s legal obligation to prevent sexual harassment it can still be found in organizations today. Previous research shows that it is difficult to effectively implement measures to prevent sexual harassment in organizations. The aim of this study is to find out if there is a difference in the preventative and reactive measures regarding sexual harassment pre and post the #metoo movement. Furthermore, the study aims to identify flaws in the preventative and reactive measures that the organizations have applied. Finally, it examines what causes changes in how the organization manages sexual harassment since the #metoo movement. The examining of an organization in a male dominated industry showed that the organization have indeed changed the way they manage sexual harassments since the #metoo movement. By comparing the change in the organizations documents with what interviewees described we found that the two corresponded well. Changes were identified both in the preventative and reactive measures taken in the organization. Yet, flaws were identified in the preventative measures taken regarding sexual harassments. The study showed that the #metoo movement has changed the institutionalized myths in the Swedish society and made a difference in how the organization manages sexual harassment in order to maintain their legitimacy.