Sexual Harassment Plagues the Auto Industry Amid Lack of Female Workers

The report compared the automotive industry results to Stanford University’s “Elephant in the Valley Survey,” which studied sexism in the tech industry in 2016, and was also used to survey the advertising and marketing industries. 

 Here are some of the key takeaways.

Nearly 70 percent of women were told they were “too aggressive,” and 50 percent were told they were “too quiet. ” 

More than 50 percent received comments on their appearance, and were told to dress more feminine and display their breasts.  

Sixty-five percent said they received an “unwanted advance” by a male coworker, which is more than any other industry surveyed by Stanford. 

Sixty-three percent of women claimed to be excluded from male-oriented company events such as happy hours, football games and meetings at cigar lounges. 

Women also said that they are asked to do “secretarial tasks” like creating posters, cleaning the office, transcribing meetings and planning events. The men escape these tasks. 

The numbers were published on Sunday after social media flooded with women’s stories of sexual harassment in the workplace amid Hollywood’s Harvey Weinstein scandal.  

One survey participant summed up her sentiments about the results. 

 “The issues facing women working in automotive are far more severe and the sexism far deeper than in other industries," she wrote. "It's a complete shame and an embarrassment."