Trigger warning: This article contains descriptions of sexual assault
Jeanie Walker remembers, as young chef, being awarded apprentice of the year — and then her feeling of excitement crashing when a colleague remarked: “Who did you suck off to get that award.”
Walker, who has now worked in the hospitality industry for four decades, said sexual abuse is so prevalent she was groped almost daily and sexual harassment was just part of the workplace banter.
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Read now“Nearly every conversation involved sex or commenting on the fact I’ve got big breasts or that I was female — unbelievable things, really, when I think back,” Walker said.
She said people would come into venues drunk, put their arms around female staff, kiss them on the neck and call them “their little sweet pea”.
The prevalance of sexual harassment and abuse in the Adelaide hospitality industry has been outlined in a research paper which found 57 per cent of respondents had been sexually harassed and 41 per cent sexually assaulted.
The investigation detailed the experiences of workers who reported sexual comments, groping, forced kissing, oral sex and rape.
Walker, now the owner of a vegan restaurant, said she began working in hospitality as 15-year-old with not much understanding of sexual abuse.
She alleged she was raped twice when working in hospitality.
Remembering what she endured in silence then now makes her emotional.
She said she had to bury a lot of the memories to “fit in” and excel in her industry.
“We were constantly targeted and harassed on a daily basis, it was just part of the routine,” she said.
“To get by as a female chef in the industry back then, you had to be twice as tough and you had to just wear it and continue on. There were no mechanisms for complaining.”
Extent of sexual abuse revealed
Some of the testimonies shared in the paper, Not So Hospitable, include instances of physical abuse where a male colleague thrust his groin into a staff member who was kneeling over, and others who coerced staff members into kissing.
One woman said a male patron put his fingers between her legs and said: “That’s a prime cut you’ve got there, chef.”
Another alleged she was assaulted by her boss.
“He told me I’d still be getting paid and roughly grabbed my hair and brought me down to my knees. I screamed and he smacked my face. He told me I was stupid for screaming in a club and that his office was soundproof,” the woman said in her testimony.
Stories of harassment were also included, such as a female worker who said: “My boss would address me as a ‘slut’ and ‘whore’ in the office in front of my other male colleagues.”
Another said she worked in a venue that had a dedicated day known as sexual assault Sundays, when “the more senior staff were allowed to make sexual jokes and harass the younger staff”.
Jamie Alexandra Bucirde worked with The University of Melbourne researchers on the report, initiated from a grassroots movement inviting women to share their experiences of sexual violence in the industry.
Bucirde said she was motivated when she saw hundreds of Adelaide women share stories of abuse but was told they could not be considered case studies for policy change because they were not part of a formal body of work.
Having worked in hospitality for 10 years before becoming a sexologist, Bucirde said she was not surprised by the testimonies but was shocked by the prevalence of abuse — and the number of respondents (33 per cent) who were underage.
The report draws on the stories of 359 male and female hospitality workers who submitted testimonies between August 2022 and December 2022.
Of 320 respondents who shared information on the perpetrator’s role, 23 per cent said their managers were part of the abuse, 22 per cent said it involved patrons and 19 per cent said it was their boss.
Bucirde said it was “unsurprising” the report found 48 per cent of people said their managers did nothing when they reported abuse, and 29 per cent felt they could not report abuse.
“We found that 8 per cent of these people who tried to report had their shifts cut or they were fired,” she said.
“If these venues have these perpetrators in positions of power (who) don’t help with reporting because it’s self-regulated, off course things are going to get brushed under the rug.”
Most of the incidents of abuse happened in bars (39 per cent) and cafes (38 per cent).
About 12 per cent of testimonies came from people who worked in bottle shops, wineries and fast food outlets.
A smaller portion of respondents worked in festivals (8 per cent) and hotels (5 per cent).
Bucirde hopes the study will lead to sexual violence being included in existing Responsible Service of Alcohol training for the hospitality industry in South Australia.
“It sets a new baseline of access to information and education,” she said.
The South Australian government said it was considering a range of measures to tackle the behaviour of sexual harassment and abuse perpetrators, including in the hospitality industry.
“Every person and every industry and organisation has a role to play in tackling sexual assault and all violence toward women and the disrespectful attitudes toward women and gender inequality that underpins it,” a spokesperson said.
- With Kimberely Pratt.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.
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