A new survey has revealed that 64% of British Jews say they have experienced antisemitism in their workplaces since the October 7 Hamas attacks.
The online survey, conducted by the Board of Deputies, the Jewish Leadership Council and Work Avenue, found that 11.5% of respondents frequently experienced antisemitism from colleagues or clients since while 52% said rarely or occasionally.
Thirty-six percent of participants said they had never experienced antisemitism.
Around a third of the participants who were part of a trade union said that they had experienced antisemitism in their union.
While 45% of respondents said they had received some level of support, this was often limited to personal expressions of empathy rather than tangible change in the organisation.
Healthcare was the most frequently reported sector for antisemitic activity at 21% , with healthcare workers often highlighting institutional apathy toward the problem. Education and publishing were the second-largest sectors cited in responses, with significant reports of hostility in academic settings.
The online survey conducted at the end of 2024 was completed by 427 participants and related to 128 incidents that occurred in conversations that they were part of, and another 83 that they overheard.
Some 102 incidents occurred over email and internal communications, and 109 over text messages.
Another 32 incidents occurred over social media, which the report said indicated the overlap between personal and professional life.
Board vice-president Andrew Gilbert said: “This report gives a real-time insight into the problems that Jewish employees have been experiencing in the workplace in a post-October 7th world. We would urge all employers to adopt the recommendations in the report as well as working with their Jewish staff to foster an inclusive workplace.
“The Board of Deputies have a dedicated member of staff leading on supporting Jewish Staff Networks via our BoD@Work programme and we are looking forward to our first conference supporting Jewish Staff Networks and to expand our Employer’s Guide.”
Work Avenue CEO Debbie Lebrett said the results were shocking but not surprising.
“The workplace should be a safe space,” said Lebrett. “To see not only a high incidence of antisemitism, but also a failure to address it, is deeply concerning.”
The survey also asked if employers released a statement about the October 7 attacks and the ensuing war. Half of the respondents said yes, but another 48% gave an extremely low rating to how supportive these statements were. Only 11% said the statements were neutral.
Jewish Leadership Council head of strategic programs Claire Mandel said the poll “results highlight the urgent need for employers to address the ways in which they handle incidents of antisemitism in the workplace.”
