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Your Employers Duty Of Care!
In addition to the moral and business case for addressing
DV in the workplace, there are legal obligations that
must be understood. A well-run business understands
that it has a duty not merely to consider employees as
workers but also as people. In the same way that we
make allowances and provide help to deal with
bereavement, physical illness or childcare, DV is an
affliction that falls under the auspices of the Health
and Safety at Work Act, 19745.
In short, employers have a legal duty to ensure the
health and wellbeing of their employees in the workplace.
Consider, for example, that the workplace is the one
location outside the home where a stalker or person who
harasses can always know where their intended victim
will be. How can an employee work to best effect when
they know that their tormentor could be outside, waiting
for them to leave, or waiting for them to pick up their
office phone? If a business has no procedures in place to
identify harassment at work, then The Alliance would
highlight that that business is failing in its duty of care.
Contact us. Page: Escape2Freedom-UK
Domestic Abuse ... A Happy Ending!
*One female employee said that when she finally told her boss about her abusive husband, it saved her job and possibly her life.
*By the time she told her employer, she had missed 45 days of work. She was emotionally exhausted and most days, too depressed to go in to work. At that point, she was on the verge of being fired.
*That's when she decided to tell her boss, feeling like she didn't have much to lose. When she told her supervisor that her husband was physically and emotionally abusing her, her supervisor's response was immediate and compassionate.
*Her employer put her in a safer work location, provided her with counselling, and let her bring her son to work when necessary. Finally, when she had the strength to leave her husband and move to another city, her employer safeguarded her new address and location by coding the payroll as if she were still in town.
*She said that this was the "best employer she has ever worked for in her life." *****
*What Should You Do for a Co-worker in an Abusive Situation?
*Keep several things in mind as you try to help. Remember that you are not a trained counsellor, so do not go too far in giving advice. You are also not the employee's boss who may be the only one who can take some effective steps in protecting the victim, planning for office safety, and referring your co-worker for professional counselling.
Ways to respond:
*Offer support by telling the person that you believe what he or she is saying, offer to help if the co-worker wants help, and praising him or her for having the courage to tell someone
*Listen without judging even if you think the person should be handling it differently or that you would handle it differently. Remember, the victim is probably already being told that he or she is stupid or not doing things right, so don't add to this by being critical. Tell the victim, "It's not your fault. Nothing you are doing or not doing means that you deserve this kind of treatment."
*Express concern by saying things like "I am afraid for you," "You shouldn't have to be afraid to go home," or "You deserve to be treated well."
*Ask your co-worker what you can do to help. If he or she asks for help, offer to get information on counselling, shelters, safety plans. Encourage him or her to go to the boss, or offer to go with the co-worker to report it, if appropriate.
*Do not say "This is really hard to believe."
*Do not say "I can't believe you put up with this. Why don't you just leave?"
*Do not say "You can't stay in this situation one more day."
*Do not say anything that starts with: "You should..." or "If I were you ..."
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