#4: Ensuring domestic abuse support is accessible to employees

There are many barriers to survivor-victims feeling they can request domestic violence support at work (read a previous article discussing this here). For employees who overcome that first hurdle and begin to consider accessing the support available, a whole new set of questions may open up, which can create further barriers.

This article explores three steps employers can take to ensure the support being offered to impacted employees is made as accessible as possible:

Define a clear process to access support
Outline process in a domestic abuse support policy
Be proactive in enabling access to support

1. Define a clear process to access support

Whether it’s occupational health support, a menstrual and menopause policy, force majeure leave, or any other kind of workplace support… employees need clarity on the steps they must take to access it and what they can expect from the process. This is especially true when it comes to domestic violence and abuse. Affected employees will want to clearly understand the process to help them decide whether they wish to avail of the relevant support and how to access it if they do.

A clear process is also beneficial to those who have a role in responding to employees impacted by domestic abuse. As an issue they are likely to have limited exposure to, having clear guidance is essential for them to appropriately support impacted employees.

As an employer or employee responsible for developing this process, start by asking yourself: ‘Who in this organisation may help an employee gain access to domestic abuse support?’ Once you have identified who is involved, you can then define the process that applies to them. These employees will most likely fit into one of two categories:

Designated person(s)
Co-workers

Designated person(s)

The term ‘designated person’ refers to anyone who is clearly identified by the employer as a contact person for domestic abuse support within their organisation. Depending on the structure of your organisation, this role may naturally fall to anyone who responds to employee wellbeing concerns generally, such as:

People managers
HR representatives
The business owner

The number of designated people should be proportionate to the overall size of the workforce. In some organisations this may mean having only 1 designated person, while larger organisations may need a group of designated people. Women’s Aid has extensive experience in helping employers determine how many designated people they require and who would be a good fit for this role through our Employer Engagement Programme – follow the link and fill out the enquiry form to discuss this with us further.

To support the designated person to respond confidently and supportively, employers should determine the process of what happens once an employee has indicated their need for support around domestic abuse. We recommend this process includes:

Keeping records related to the disclosure and/or any support measures requested in a safe and confidential way
Safety and wellbeing planning (addressed in an earlier article: How employers can support staff impacted by domestic abuse)
Agreeing frequency and method of communication with the affected employee about the issue following the initial disclosure

While it is important to define processes which are domestic abuse informed, there is no need to reinvent the wheel. In fact, we recommend leaning on existing organisational practices and policies if possible. For example, it is likely that you already have a process in place for recording sensitive leave types in a discreet way and the same could be applied to domestic violence leave.

Co-workers

This category captures, well, everyone else! Survivor-victims are most likely to talk about the abuse they are being subjected to with someone they know and trust. At work, this could be a trusted colleague who is not a designated person. Recent research has found that most survivor-victims who told someone in work directly about the abuse told a trusted colleague (70%) followed by their supervisor/manager (39%), HR (29%), or a designated person (20%)^[1]. Co-workers may also be aware a colleague is experiencing domestic abuse even if they haven’t been told directly.

As you may have experienced in your own working life, co-workers often show up for one another and provide informal support when times are tough. In the case of domestic abuse, this could be a co-worker who helps a colleague to recognise their experience as domestic violence through naming what they have observed, asking questions, or sharing their perspective. They may offer sympathy and a listening ear, or assistance with practical matters like moving home or accompanying their colleague to a car or bus stop after work. This highlights the importance of ensuring that all members of staff are equipped with the basic information they need to signpost an impacted employee to available workplace support, including an appropriate designated person(s).

2. Outline process in a domestic abuse support policy

Employees may be deterred from accessing domestic violence and abuse support if there is any uncertainty around the process of doing so. To counteract this, we recommend establishing a dedicated domestic abuse support policy. It should be clear about who the designated person(s) is/are and their role and responsibilities, the process co-workers should follow, and your organisation’s full strategy for responding to the issue.

A standalone domestic abuse support policy is not only for the direct benefit of impacted employees; it can increase the likelihood that a concerned co-worker has the confidence and willingness to provide appropriate support. It is also an important way of emphasising the unacceptability of coercive control, contributing to a zero-tolerance attitude towards this form of abuse in our society.

Not sure what should go into your domestic abuse support policy? Visit DVatWork.ie to download a free policy template suitable for adaptation by workplaces of any size, industry, or setting. It incorporates statutory domestic violence leave alongside other recommended support measures, discussed in an earlier article: How employers can support staff impacted by domestic abuse.

Once your domestic violence support policy is in place, make sure your employees know about it. Consider raising awareness at the initial launch stage and then on an ongoing basis. We recommend including it in your employee handbook or wherever employment-related policies are held. For more ideas on raising awareness, check out an earlier article in this series: How to foster a culture where employees feel they can ask for support.

3. Be proactive in enabling access to support

The barriers to seeking support which survivors face can be difficult to overcome. Impacted employees may still hesitate to request domestic abuse support even with a clear policy in place. Some survivor-victims may struggle to name their own experience as domestic abuse and not realise that the supports available could be useful to them. This is where being proactive in offering support when you have concerns about an employee is critical. A concerned co-worker or designated person who opens up the conversation can have an untold impact on a survivor-victim by potentially helping them to recognise their own experience or creating an opportunity for them to speak about it.

The signs that create concern about an employee may vary from one person to the next. Generally, there will be more than one sign occurring creating a sense that something isn’t right. If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t! While it should not be assumed that coercive control is the underlying cause, considering how prevalent the issue is, it’s important to have an openness to the fact that it could be. For more information on spotting possible signs that an employee is being subjected to domestic abuse and opening up the conversation, take a look at the Guidance Note at www.DVatWork.ie (section 5: Disclosures).

Employers should also consider how to make support options available to employees who are being subjected to domestic abuse without the need for them to tell someone about it. For example, contact details for specialist support services could be shared regularly or posted in a visible physical or digital location.

No one in the workplace is expected to be an expert on domestic violence or act as a support worker or counsellor to an affected employee. However, all employees should be equipped with appropriate knowledge and tools to respond to the issue safely. This is where training comes in.

Different levels of training can be provided to employees based on their role and its relation to the workplace response to domestic abuse. Senior leaders and designated person(s) will benefit from detailed training which equips them to raise their concerns and respond to an employee’s needs within the context of the workplace policy and in a domestic abuse informed way. For co-workers, a concise awareness-raising presentation is suitable. This will give the general workforce a basic understanding of domestic abuse and how they can be part of the workplace response to it.

Women’s Aid is a leading provider of training on responding to domestic abuse in the workplace in Ireland. Visit our website for an overview of our Employer Response to Domestic Abuse training programme.

A meaningful workplace response to domestic violence and abuse moves beyond simply making support measures available. It considers how to those supports can be made more accessible to employees who need them in way that is domestic abuse informed. Putting time into determining the processes associated with accessing support and raising awareness about them is part of this. Taking a proactive approach to offering support can create opportunities for impacted employees to share what they’re experiencing, opening doors to what could be life-changing support.

📢 Call to action 📢

Ask your employees how clear they are on the process of accessing the domestic abuse support you are offering. If there is confusion on any aspect of the process, develop a plan to clarify it.