Domestic Violence Victims Deserve Rights!!!!!!!!!!!!

Domestic Violence Victims Deserve Rights!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dear Decision Maker,

The increasing incidents of domestic violence and the toll it takes on society are staggering. Mostly, domestic violence is a problem that remains hidden from general discussion, unless it involves a high profile individual and is splashed all over the news. Still, many women, and the great majority of domestic violence victims are women, suffer silently through what can be a terrifying situation. To compound the problem, all too often working women faced with domestic violence are threatened on another front: the loss of their job because they need time off to attend a court hearing, get an injunction for protection, receive assistance from a victim's advocate, arrange for housing at a battered women's shelter, or receive medical or mental health care. It has been estimated that domestic violence results in 8 million lost work days and $ 4.1 billion in medical costs a year. Of course, this does not measure the emotional toll violence takes on family, children and friends, and says nothing of lost efficiency and productivity when it seeps into the workplace. More than anything, victims need a dependable source of income to flee there abusive situations and create new lives for themselves and the children that may be involved.

Because for so many losing their jobs has been part and parcel of being a victim of domestic violence, legislatures in an increasing number of states have enacted legislation to provide protected time off from work, in addition to other protected leaves or paid leaves offered as part of an employee benefits plan. With two new states mandating domestic violence leave for employees this year and other states with laws pending before legislatures, employers need to be aware of this growing trend to provide protection and accommodations for employees who are the victims of domestic violence.

Current legal protections for employees who miss or have to take time away from work due to domestic violence or sexual assault vary widely. Some states simply prohibit discrimination, retaliation, or termination of an individual who needs time off to respond to a subpoena in order to testify or meet with a prosecuting attorney or law enforcement for the prosecution of a perpetrator of domestic violence. But since victims of domestic violence need time away from work beyond the courtroom, a number of states have begun to provide broader protections specifically allowing time off to victims or family members of victims to help address a number of non-judicial issues that result from domestic violence. These include time off to obtain domestic violence injunctions, arrange for alternate housing, seek medical care or mental health counseling, or secure a home to make it safer for the victim and their family. One state, Illinois, classifies domestic violence victims alongside other protected categories, such as sex, race, national origin and disability, to prohibit any discrimination due to the employee having been the victim of domestic violence. In addition to state statutes, certain larger municipalities, like Miami and New York City, have passed laws that provide protections often greater than those provided in the state statutes. It is important, therefore, for employers to become familiar with what is required in a particular jurisdiction when formulating policies and addressing employee requests for leave based on claims of domestic violence.

Most states already have laws that allow employees time off from work to appear in court or provide testimony pursuant to a subpoena, especially when the employee is the victim of the crime. For example, Connecticut law imposes criminal contempt sanctions, with 30 days in jail, for any employer that terminates or interferes with an employee taking time off work to obtain a domestic violence injunction or provide testimony in a criminal proceeding. Such legislation is premised mainly on the concept that businesses should support, not interfere with, the proper functioning of the civil and criminal justice systems. Legislation aside, supporting the judicial system with reasonable leave for employees subpoenaed to testify also makes good business sense. An employer should remember that there may come a day when it is a defendant in a lawsuit and will need former employees or others to provide testimony in support of its position. In such a case, the defendant employer will not want to face a situation where a witness's employer refuses to allow that witness time off to appear in court or at a deposition, leaving the witness with the choice of responding to a subpoena or keeping his or her job.

Currently ten states (California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island) provide victims of domestic violence and sexual assault with protected leave to address the numerous issues that often face victims of such crimes. At the core of this legislation, leave is generally granted to victims of domestic violence or their families to obtain a restraining order or injunction against violence, meet with prosecuting attorneys, attend court hearings, find alternate housing, such as at a women's shelter or at another location, seek medical care or mental health counseling, or other victim's services. The amount of leave that is required varies from as little as three (3) days, to thirty (30) days, to twelve (12) weeks, to a "reasonable" amount of time off. The criteria for when an employee becomes eligible for such leave also varies from state to state.

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