Introduction Gender-based violence and harassment (GBVH) in the workplace has been found to be associated with self-reported mental ill-health. The prospective risk of using psychotropic medication for the treatment of common mental disorders (CMD) is unclear, though.

Objectives To estimate the prospective association between the exposure to three types of GBVH and the purchase of psychotropic medication in a large population-based Swedish study.

Methods Survey data from the biannual Swedish Work Environment Survey (SWES) from 2007 to 2013 (N=23 452) were merged with data on antidepressants, sedatives/hypnotics and anxiolytics from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. Exposure to GBVH was measured as sexual harassment 1) from workplace personnel, 2) from non-workplace personnel (e.g., customers or clients), and 3) gender harassment from workplace personnel. Gender-stratified cox proportional hazards analyses with days to outtake as the time-scale and first instance of medicine outtake as the failure event were fitted for each exposure. Analyses were adjusted for age, parental migration background, education, income, family situation, and labor market industry.

Results In men, weekly to daily exposure to gender harassment (HR 2.39, 95% CI 1.35 - 4.23) and in women, gender harassment once in 12 months (HR 1.18, 95% CI 1.02 - 1.36) and weekly to daily (HR 1.62, 95% CI 1.13 - 2.31) were associated with prospective medication outtake. In women, exposure to sexual harassment monthly from workplace personnel (HR 1.60, 95% CI 1.03 – 2.49) and from non-workplace personnel (HR 1.34, 95% CI 1.00 – 1.79) were also associated with medication purchase.

Conclusion Exposure to gender harassment at the workplace may contribute to the development of CMD, particularly when it occurs more frequently. Sexual harassment seems to impact the mental health of women, regardless if it stems from individuals inside or outside the organization.