Thesis

Customer sexual harassment of frontline service workers in Scottish hospitality : the role of line managers in addressing the problem

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Awarding institution
  • University of Strathclyde
Date of award
  • 2026
Thesis identifier
  • T18017
Person Identifier (Local)
  • 202268748
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Qualification Name
Department, School or Faculty
Abstract
  • This thesis examines the issue of customer sexual harassment (CSH) experienced by frontline service workers in Scotland’s hospitality sector. Sexual harassment (SH) is understood as unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature directed towards an individual; in this context, the individuals are customer-facing hospitality workers. The study explores the prevalence of CSH, analyses its impact on workers, and investigates how line managers respond to customerperpetrated incidents. It also considers how human resource practitioners (HRPs) support both workers and managers in managing customer abuse. Adopting a holistic, multi-stakeholder perspective, the research draws on qualitative data from 44 semi-structured interviews with frontline service workers, line managers, internal and external HRPs, hospitality trade union representatives, and an industry representative. Findings indicate that legally defined forms of SH by customers were prevalent across all nine participating establishments. The study further reveals that both workers and managers interpret incidents through a personal “interpretive prism”, leading to hierarchical assessments of seriousness. Individual interpretation and perceived customer “sovereignty” contribute to underreporting by workers, heightening managerial caution in addressing customer misconduct. The research also identifies significant shortcomings in training for frontline workers regarding the nature of SH and strategies for managing abusive customers. Weak communication between line managers and HRPs left HR staff largely unaware of the extent of customer abuse. Additionally, the findings suggest that both managerial groups displayed only a perfunctory concern for workers' well-being in the context of customer mistreatment. Four key contributions emerge from this study. First, it demonstrates the interpretive prism's centrality in shaping how individuals evaluate incidents of CSH on a hierarchical scale. Second, it highlights managerial caution in navigating perceived customer power as a barrier to proactive intervention. Third, it identifies “perfunctory concern” by line managers and HRPs concerning worker well-being when addressing customer misbehaviour and abuse. Fourthly, regarding CSH, it shows that the worker-line manager-HR triangle has inherent communication weaknesses, with HR being a distant partner in the triad.
Advisor / supervisor
  • Nickson, Dennis
  • Hadjisolomou, Anastasios
Resource Type
DOI
Date Created
  • 2025

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