A national employee survey by online jobs site RemoteWorker has highlighted how toxic many workplaces still are in the UK, with millions of workers choosing to work from home to avoid bullying, homophobic behaviour and even sexual harassment.

The national survey has revealed that a staggering one in five (16%) of employees have witnessed homophobic behaviour at work, a third of employees (31%) had witnessed sexist behaviour and more disturbingly 17% had seen sexual harassment taking place in their workplace. Bullying (42%), offensive comments (37%) and discrimination (31%) topped the list of inappropriate behaviours witnessed by employees in the UK.

The survey, undertaken by the online jobs board that specialises in helping hiring managers and businesses connect with job-seeking professionals for remote work positions across the UK and internationally, painted a stark picture of the modern workplace.

It highlighted why so many workers prefer to work from home; with nearly all employees surveyed (96%) noting that working from home on a full or part-time basis was one of the most positive parts of their job.

Joe Boll, CEO at RemoteWorker, commented, “We believe every employee should have the choice to work independently from an office or workplace if possible. This’s why we use the most cutting-edge tech to make it easy for anyone to find a new remote working role.

“Our national employee survey has highlighted just how toxic many UK workplaces still are for many employees, which is why employers need to offer roles that have the option to work remotely when looking to attract the best talent.”