A violência física contra a mulher no ambiente de trabalho

Abstract

Physical violence against women in the workplace is an issue that remains understudied in today’s society. This essay presents the results of the study we conducted regarding this complex issue. The main objective of the study was to analyse the use of physical violence as a means of behaviour control, and identify how organizations in general deal with such practices. It also sought to discover how the victims may come to understand and / or justify the violent behaviour towards them. The study interviewed ten victims of abuse, all residents of the State of Rio de Janeiro, who narrated their personal and professional experiences. We processed the information obtained from the interviews, and used this data alongside a high-level analysis of the women’s role from a socio-cultural-historical perspective in Brazilian society. The results allowed us to understand the oppression suffered by women throughout time. We were also able to compare and contrast this to similar situations in other countries (Chapter 1). We then present the focus of the study, physical violence against women in the work place. The focus was defined based on publications by leading researchers in the field, and lists the documented types of work related violence to date (Chapter 2). Further, we expose the methodology used by employers to dictate unlawful practices to control their staff (Chapter 3). We also identified the importance of women’s work to society, and the positive impact this has in social development, family care and self-sufficiency (Chapter 4). We then discuss that while most media outlets repeatedly expose violence against women, from an academic perspective the issue is still largely ignored (Chapter 5). In conclusion, it is clear that unfortunately only a small number of studies to date have covered violence in the workplace. However, physical violence specifically has never been the main subject point. It is important to understand that this type of violence can cause physical damage, lower overall health, and in some cases even death (e.g. abortion) to the women who experience it.