On July 25, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a hearing to discuss violence against women in the workplace. The hearing was chaired by Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-MN).
Diane Stuart of the Violence Against Women Office (VAWO) at the Department of Justice discussed the office’s efforts to address domestic violence in the workplace. Noting that domestic violence is unique from other forms of violence in the workplace, Ms. Stuart said, “Domestic violence spills into the workplace because it is an easy place for the abuser to find the victim,” adding, “In most cases, the abuser is threatened by the fact that the victim is working outside of the home and feels intense jealousy and rage that her attentions are directed elsewhere.”
Ms. Stuart told the committee that the Office of Personnel Management developed a guide, Responding to Domestic Violence: Where Federal Employees Can Find Help, in an effort to address concerns about workplace violence. “Considered one of the best of its kind, it provides concise up-to-date information on domestic violence, with concrete advice for the employee who is a victim, for friends and coworkers, and for their supervisors,” she said.
Additionally, the National Advisory Council on Violence Against Women and the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services have developed a web-based toolkit that “discusses promoting safety in the workplace and presents a number of recommendations that businesses and communities can consider.”
The VAWO also provided funding to the Family Violence Prevention Fund to develop state leadership teams that will create models of multi-disciplinary responses to domestic violence in the workplace. The organization also received funding to establish a National Workplace Resource Center on Domestic Violence.
“Working in partnership with employers, we can help educate them about the dangers of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking and assist them with establishing effective policies and programs,” stated Ms. Stuart.
The committee also heard powerful testimony from Kathy Evsich, a survivor of domestic violence from North Carolina. She was fired from two different jobs because her abuser harassed her at the workplace. Ms. Evsich was seriously wounded by her abuser, but he has since been sent to prison. “Without a job, I was stuck. Without a job, or other means to support my children, I didn’t know how I was ever going to get away from this monster,” she said, adding, “A steady job is critical to women like me—it’s the only sure way we can get the economic security that we need to get ourselves out of an abusive situation.”
Sidney Harman of Harman International Industries, Inc. detailed his company’s efforts to address violence in the workplace. “As the Executive Chairman of a successful, ethical, multi-billion dollar company, I am not just responsible for the numbers. I am also responsible for all the people I work with,” he said, adding, “If one of our employees is abused at home, that is my business and my company has a responsibility to do what it can to give her the support she needs to feel safe.” Last year, Mr. Harman created a company-wide domestic violence program after one of his employees was killed by her abuser after returning home from work.
“A key part of our program has been mandatory training of managers and employees in all our domestic divisions,” he told the committee. “Training is comprised of an education component, which provides information about domestic violence, posters, safety cards, and brochures so that employees have the information available when they most need it.”
Discussing the prevalence of domestic and sexual violence, Kathy Rodgers of the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund said that annually nearly 3 million individuals are victimized by their intimate partners; over one million women are stalked; and between 260,000 and 400,000 people are victims of rape. Additionally, “between 35 and 56 percent of battered women in three separate studies reported that they were harassed at work by their batterers,” she said.
Ms. Rodgers testified that many women were fearful of talking about their abuse with their employer. “Between one quarter and one half of domestic violence victims surveyed in three separate studies reported that they lost a job due, in part, to domestic violence. Similarly, almost fifty percent of sexual assault survivors lose their jobs or are forced to quit in the aftermath of the crime,” she told the committee.
Speaking to the need for federal legislation, Ms. Rodgers said, “States, counties, and cities have enacted laws that provide assistance to some employees who are victims of domestic and sexual violence. But, current laws are still inadequate.” She continued, “To date, only New York City prohibits employers from discriminating against domestic violence victims.”
