The Ethical Trade Forums held their last Online seminar of 2025 on December 16. The seminar was entitled “New requirements and psychosocial risks associated with gender” and was attended by 56 participants.
The presenters were Soraya Herrera Luque and Iván Martínez del Cerro, both from the National Institute for Safety and Health at Work (INSST), belonging to the Management, Ergonomics, and Psychosociology Unit of the National Center for Protective Equipment in Seville.
During their presentations, they addressed issues such as sexual violence and gender-based harassment, highlighting that in all cases these occur in a hostile work environment and therefore companies must take action. In both situations, the victims are mostly women, who are four times more likely to suffer any type of violence.
Special concern was also raised regarding equality, recommending the incorporation of a gender perspective into companies’ production processes, the provision of information and training, zero tolerance, a review of leadership styles, and the distribution of tasks based on gender.
All companies have a legal obligation to promote working conditions that prevent crimes and other behaviors against sexual freedom and sexual harassment, incorporating specific procedures for prevention and reporting channels. To achieve this, it is necessary to carry out an occupational risk assessment with a gender perspective.
Finally, it is important to emphasize the relevance of having a protocol in place to prevent such situations, but also to establish procedures for action once they occur.
We would like to thank the speakers for sharing their knowledge, and also the participants, both for following the seminar attentively and for replicating what they learned during it in their companies.