ADDRESSING WORKPLACE IMPACTS OF DOMESTIC AND

SEXUAL VIOLENCE

OCTOBER 5, 2015

Maya Raghu Senior Attorney Futures Without Violence/Workplaces Respond mraghu@futureswithoutviolence.org 202-595-7385

This project was supported by Grant No. 2012-TA-AX-K055 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this program are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.

Workplaces Respond National Resource Center

Created and funded by U.S. Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women

Addresses domestic and sexual violence and stalking (prevention and response)

Audience is non-traditional stakeholders: employers, unions, worker organizations

Partnership of national organizations: legal, advocacy, business

Free educational materials, interactive features, technical assistance

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www.workplacesrespond.org twitter.com/WorkplaceNRC

facebook.com/WorkplacesRespond

Workplace Toolkit

•Poster for the workplace •Safety Card for Employees •Protection Order Guide For Employees •Supervisor Training Video •Quiz

Learning Objectives

At the end of this presentation, you will better be able to: 1. Identify the ways that domestic and sexual violence and

stalking impact the workplace. 2. Develop proactive workplace strategies that promote a

victim-centered approach and accountability for employees who are perpetrators.

3. Utilize an innovative collaboration between stakeholders

to the workplace impacts of violence.

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Poll #1

Which best describes your role? health care provider domestic or sexual violence service provider other (write in to chat box)

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Poll #2

Has a client or coworker disclosed to you any workplace experiences with domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking?

Yes No Not sure

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Three Rs

Recognize Dynamics of violence Impacts of violence on workplace

Respond Laws, policies and procedures Supports and accountability

Refer Workplace resources Community partnerships

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Recognize

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Domestic Violence

Sexual Violence

Stalking Workplace Impact

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Workplace Impact

Happens at the workplace

Appearance in the workplace/stalking Threat, harassing or violent incident Using work time/resources to perpetrate

Happens somewhere else but affects workplace Safety Performance issues Physical/mental health issues Trauma from previous incident

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Impacts & Costs to Employers

Lost Productivity: The annual cost of lost productivity due to domestic violence is $727.8 million (in 1995 dollars).

(CDC, 2003)

Medical costs: The costs of direct medical and mental health care services related to intimate partner violence total nearly $4.1 billion a year. (CDC, 2003)

Security Concerns: 94% of corporate security and safety directors at companies nationwide rank domestic violence as a high security concern.

(CAEPV, 2008)

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Impact on Victim

Safety Health/medical issues Legal issues Child care Housing Finances

Absences Chronic tardiness Changes in work

performance On the job harassment

and violence Unexplained bruises or

injuries Resignation/Termination

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Cost to Victims

Of 79% of stalking victims who had a job, one in eight lost time from work. More than half the victims surveyed lost five or more days from work.

(Baum, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2009)

36% of rape/sexual assault victims lost more than 10 days of work after their victimization.

(Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2001)

Victims of intimate partner violence lose 8 million days of work each year. The equivalent of 32,000 full-time jobs Over 5.5 million days of household productivity (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

(2003).Costs of Intimate Partner Violence Against Women in the United States).

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Poll #3

Have you ever helped a client or co worker address workplace issues related to violence?

Yes No Not sure

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Respond

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Respond

Assess risk Assess needs For victims: act to support and empower, not rescue See the toolkit at:

http://www.workplacesrespond.org/implement/workplace-toolkit

For perpetrators: do not reinforce behavior and make consequences clear

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Victimized Employee’s Concerns

Safety Confidentiality Job retention Work performance Employer assistance

Time off or other changes Safety measures

Reputation/appearance Financial and economic security

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Employer Concerns

Safety Productivity Potential liability Costs (lost time, low productivity, medical,

accommodations) Employee retention Reputation with employees and clients Happiness/well-being of employees

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Assessing Risk to the Workplace

Any threats to come to the workplace Any stalking or harassment directed at

workplace (phone calls, emails, appearances) Firearms Protection orders Workplace safety planning

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Respond: Employment Laws 21

Antidiscrimination

Leave

Accommodations

Unemployment Insurance

Workers Compensation Disability insurance / Paid family leave

Responding to Perpetrator Employees

Impacts & Costs of Perpetrators Performance:

80% of perpetrators said their own job performance was negatively affected by their perpetration of domestic violence.

19% caused or almost caused an accident at work. In many cases supervisors were aware of the perpetrator’s behavior but

failed to confront/admonish the employee about it. (Schmidt & Barnett, 2012)

Missed Work: Between 42% and 51.8% of perpetrators of domestic violence were either

late or missed work entirely because of their abusive behavior. Use of Company Resources:

More than three-quarters of perpetrators used workplace resources at least once to express remorse or anger, check up on, pressure, or threaten the victim. (Lim, et al, 2004)

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Responding to Perpetrator Employees

Investigation Safety Clear statement of what is and isn’t acceptable Accountability Prevention

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Other considerations

Confidentiality & Privacy Role of the Union

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Refer

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Human Resources Community resources EAP Law enforcement Union Resources for perpetrator employees?

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Principles 27

Proactive Prevention

Response Collaboration

Prevention and Response Strategy

Multidisciplinary team Awareness raising activities Workplace guidance/policies/protocols Education and training Partnerships with community stakeholders

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Multidisciplinary Response Team

Essential to proactive, comprehensive action HR EAP Legal Security Union Others

Each dept’s roles and responsibilities

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Awareness Raising Activities

Posters/information about services/referrals Talks to raise awareness and recognize if

someone may need assistance Quiz at www.workplacesrespond.org Safety assessment

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Workplace Policy/Guidance

Know and incorporate relevant laws and liability issues Protection orders Firearms

Look at existing policies and how they would interact Assistance and referrals for victim-employees Perpetrator as employee: use of workplace resources

and work time; discipline; time off; referral to resources What to do if victim and perpetrator are co-workers

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Poll #4

Does your employer (or do you, as an employer) have DV/SV/stalking workplace policies/protocols?

Yes No Don't know

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Does your organization currently have a formal (i.e., written, documented) workplace policy that specifically addresses any of the following?

The Workplace Impact of Domestic and Sexual Violence and Stalking ©SHRM 2013

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Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from analysis.

Education and Training

Training on policy and procedures EAP staff Relevant managers/supervisors Co-workers New employee orientation Add-on to sexual harassment training,

safety/health

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Does your organization currently have a formal workplace training program (e.g., an in-person presentation or web-based training) that specifically addresses any of the following?

The Workplace Impact of Domestic and Sexual Violence and Stalking ©SHRM 2013

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Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from analysis.

What are the primary reasons that your organization does not currently have a formal training program on the workplace impact that includes all three of these topics: domestic violence, sexual violence and stalking?

The Workplace Impact of Domestic and Sexual Violence and Stalking ©SHRM 2013 36

Note: n = 438. Percentages do not total 100% due multiple response options. Only respondents whose organizations did not have training and were not planning to implement training for domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking were asked this question. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from analysis. Other reasons given include “covered in another workplace policy,” “too small of an organization,” “have not had issues in our workforce” and “training is not necessary.”

Poll #5

Which of the following activities have you helped conduct for a workplace? (choose one)

Presented about violence to a company or its employees

Provided or posted resources Develop policy Other

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Partnership With Community

Service providers Law enforcement

Emergency response Enforcing orders of protection which cover workplace

Court system Health care providers

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Pilot Site #2: Towson, Maryland

Partners: University of MD St.

Joseph Medical Center

House of Ruth Maryland TurnAround, Inc. St. Ambrose Housing Aid

Center

Unique Challenges & Opportunities

Recent history of joining Univ. of MD Medical Systems

Hierarchy Not unionized Culture of caring Recent employee deaths from DV Dependence on HR to address “personal”

issues and reluctance to take proactive steps Pre-existing relationships with House of Ruth

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Resources

Workplaces Respond: A National Resource Center www.workplacesrespond.org

State and Local Laws: http://www.workplacesrespond.org/resources

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