Civil servants are more exposed to violence at work than private sector employees

Women suffer 61% of attacks, while they represent 64% of the civil service workforce, according to a study by the General Directorate of Administration and Civil Service.

Insults, harassment, sexual violence… Public officials are more victims of violence than employees of private companies and this violence is more often suffered in the context of their work, according to a study published Thursday July 25 by the General Directorate of Administration and Civil Service (DGAFP).

In 2021, 14% of civil servants reported having suffered “at least one attack” to their person, a percentage which falls to 12% in the private sector. 59% of public sector employees state that the physical violence they suffered took place in a professional setting, compared to 19% of employees who state that they are victims of physical violence at work.

“This gap comes from greater professional exposure: excluding domestic violence, 45% of the attacks described by public sector employees are associated with their job, compared to 33% for private sector employees”develops the DGAFP which used the results of the survey Lived and felt in terms of security (VRS), conducted by the Ministry of the Interior with 100,000 people.

“The police, military and firefighters are the first to be affected” by violence in their functions: “they represent 5% of civil servants but 19% of victimizations (attacks on the person) that took place in the professional context”explains the DGAFP.“Intermediate professions in health and social work are also over-represented: 11% of public sector employees work in these professions but they suffer 17% of the attacks occurring in the professional context”adds the administration.

Women suffer 61% of attacks, while they represent 64% of the public sector workforce. In addition, 4% of immigrants say they experience violence at work, a lower share than their presence in the public sector (7% of the workforce). A little less than one in ten public sector employees (9%) files a complaint when they are the victim of violence at work, a percentage three times higher than in the private sector (3%).