Seven out of ten office workers believe that there is a high likelihood of facing secondary victimization if they report sexual crimes in the workplace, a survey showed.

Gapjil 119, a civic group protecting workers' rights, announced the results of a survey titled "Experiences of Workplace Sexual Crimes and Perceptions of Secondary Victimization," which was commissioned to Global Research, a polling agency, and conducted among 1,000 office workers aged 19 or older nationwide from August 1 to 7.

According to the survey, 72.3 percent of respondents thought there was a high possibility of secondary victimization when reporting or raising issues regarding sexual crimes at work.

As for the reasons behind believing in a high possibility of secondary victimization, 37.2 percent cited "the fear that separation from the perpetrator or victim protection measures would not be properly implemented," making it the most common response.

This was followed by "the atmosphere of viewing the victim as partially responsible" at 36.2 percent, and "the concern that disciplinary action or measures against the perpetrator would not be properly executed" at 30.2 percent.

Secondary victimization was found to affect not only the individuals involved but also the decisions of witnessing colleagues regarding whether to report.

When witnessing a colleague facing secondary victimization, 65.4 percent of respondents answered that it would influence their own decisions to raise issues in the future.

Meanwhile, 20.3 percent of respondents reported experiencing workplace sexual harassment, and among those, 40.9 percent chose to "endure it or pretend not to notice" after the incident.

The perpetrators were most frequently higher-level superiors (excluding executives) at 32.5 percent, followed by colleagues of similar rank (23.6%) and employers (14.8%).

Those who experienced workplace sexual assault or harassment stood at 15.4 percent, while responses indicating experiences of stalking reached 13.9 percent.

Only 59.2 percent responded that their company would protect them from workplace sexual crimes.

Gapjil 119 stated, "Although the law stipulates obligations such as protecting victims and disciplining perpetrators, they are not functioning properly in the field," adding, "Organizational cultures that dismiss sexual crimes as personal conflicts or treat reporters as troublemakers must change."

The organization further pointed out, "Beyond merely disciplining perpetrators, post-incident monitoring and improvements in organizational culture focused on the victim's safe return and the prevention of recurrence are necessary."