Supports (th)at work

2. Employers are taking action to address intimate partner violence

Employers of all sizes are taking action to address violence, with workplace actions to address IPV often focusing on measures to identify and respond appropriately to signs of abuse, and connect victim-survivors with resources and support (Adhia et al., 2019[20]). Four approaches are particularly common: development of organisational policies or frameworks that set out a robust approach to violence; building capacity in the workforce by upskilling workers and establishing supportive processes to respond to violence; connecting victim-survivors with appropriate supports, either through direct provision or referral to services; and establishing workplace flexibility measures that enable victim-survivors to plan for their safety and deal with the impacts of the abuse while maintaining employment.

2.1. Setting out an effective organisational approach to violence

Some companies are focusing on developing a robust policy or framework that guides the organisation’s response to violence, setting out critical considerations such as how disclosures should be handled, confidentiality and safety measures, the support available to workers, and the organisation’s approach to perpetration. These policies can help to build confidence in reporting by clearly setting out how and to whom disclosures can be made, and the support that could be made available to workers to help keep them safe and employed (some practical examples of safety planning measures are highlighted in Box 1, together with some considerations for employers in responding to perpetration). For example, in 2021 the multinational luxury goods company Kering implemented a global domestic violence policy, providing for confidential support, flexible working arrangements (as to working hours and work location) and referral to services (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]), while Vodafone’s global policy has provided for specialist counselling and up to 10 days paid “safe leave” for employees experiencing domestic abuse and violence to seek help and go to appointments (UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Trade, 2021[21]).

Partnerships can play an important role in establishing safe and effective workplace approaches to IPV. Input from survivors and specialist organisations is critically important: as noted by the Champions of Change Coalition, approaches to violence are most likely to be safe and effective when developed together with people with experience of violence and abuse (2021[22]). Social dialogue, trade unions, worker’s representatives and collective bargaining, too, can play a key role in supporting robust workplace approaches. In France, energy company EDF’s collective bargaining agreement on gender and professional equality envisages workplace supports for victim-survivors, and EDF has partnered with Association FIT (une Femme, un Toit), for expertise, advice and training on domestic violence (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]; Baranska and Picard, 2024[18]). In the United Kingdom, UNISON has developed a model workplace policy on domestic violence taking into account remote working risks (UNISON, 2022[23]), cited in (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]).

Box 1. What are employers doing to help keep their workplace and workers safe? Workplace safety planning and responses to perpetration in practice

Workplace safety planning

Workplace safety planning is an important tool to identify the steps that employers can take to help keep victim-survivors safe while they are travelling to and at the workplace, including in the context of broader occupational health and safety measures. Workplace safety plans should be based on the individual needs and circumstances of workers experiencing abuse and developed jointly with the victim-survivor, recognising – as noted by the Champions of Change Coalition – that victim-survivors are often the experts in managing their own safety, and are doing so on a daily basis (Champions of Change Coalition, 2021[22]). Some of the practical measures that employers can consider to keep their workers safe include:

• Measures to prevent victim-survivors being located or contacted by their partners, such as changing a worker’s e‑mail address or phone number, providing them with a second mobile phone, re‑assessing any safety and security (e.g. GPS tracking) features on work devices or enabling victim-survivors to relocate to a different or more secure office location if they request to do so

• Support, check-in and emergency contact systems, such as panic buttons or safety words that can be signalled in case of emergency, having a dedicated support person or contact within the organisation, or checking in with employees when contact is lost

• Flexible working arrangements, including as to working hours, tasks and work location; and

• Measures to keep employees safe on their way to and from work, for example through taxi pick-ups or arranging for someone to escort them from their transport to the workplace.

Workplace safety plans should be sensitive to the unique needs of remote workers, for example by ensuring alternative options for employees that cannot safely work from home.

Approaches to perpetration

Workplaces also need to consider how to respond when an employee perpetrates IPV, or might be at risk of doing so. As with responses developed for victim-survivors of violence, workplace responses to perpetration should be tailored to the unique circumstances of workers. The Australian state of Queensland has teamed up with partners to produce guidance on workplace approaches to employees who use or may use violence or abuse, highlighting that workplace responses should take into account a number of factors, such as the safety of their workers and workplace; the employer’s legal obligations (including confidentiality and any legal limitations to confidentiality); whether workplace adjustments are needed to ensure safety (for example, by strengthening security, controlling access to work resources, or separating workers if both parties are employed in the same organisation); whether disciplinary action is warranted (for example, if an incident takes place in the workplace); and whether early intervention, support and referral to behaviour change programmes are possible/appropriate under the circumstances, amongst others. In France, for instance, government guidance highlights that public officials who perpetrate domestic and/or intra-family violence may be subject to disciplinary action under certain circumstances, for example where the violence impacts the operation of the service and brings the administration into disrepute, taking into account factors such as the severity of the acts and the nature of the worker’s duties, amongst other factors (Directorate-General for Administration and the Civil Service, 2023[24]).

Employers should also take care to carefully consider the language used around perpetration of violence, noting the need to promote accountability while encouraging positive behaviour change, for example through sensitive and behaviourally-informed language. In Australia, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations has supported the development of guidance on “how to manage and support employees who identify as domestic violence perpetrators,” encouraging employers to support efforts to change behaviour.

Note: See (Champions of Change Coalition, 2021[22]) for more practical examples of workplace safety planning, the role of safety planning in the broader context of workplace safety and security, and for practical resources on developing a workplace safety plan. For more comprehensive suggestions on workplace approaches to perpetration see (Queensland Government et al., n.d.[25]), noting that legal obligations may differ in the reader’s national context, as national legislation may influence national employers’ legal obligations.

Source: Workplace safety planning adapted from (Champions of Change Coalition, 2021[22]).Other sources: (Queensland Government et al., n.d.[25]; Directorate-General for Administration and the Civil Service, 2023[24]; Transitioning Well, 2023[26]; Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, 2023[27]).

2.2. Building capacity in the workforce to prevent and respond to violence

Many companies are also moving to build capacity in the workforce to address IPV, by upskilling workers and drawing on specialist support. To be effective, policies to keep workers safe and employed need to be backed by well-prepared people and processes: a company that encourages disclosure without preparing key personnel to be able to effectively respond to that disclosure can risk further harm, including for the person disclosing, for the person receiving that disclosure (including through potential for vicarious trauma), and the wider workforce.

This means, for example, building capacity in the workforce (people and processes) to identify and respond appropriately to disclosures of violence, to be able to conduct safety planning and/or workplace risk assessments where needed, to be able to intervene should violence spill into the workplace (including in the context of broader occupational health and safety structures), and to ensure appropriate support structures for employees supporting victim-survivor colleagues. L’Oréal has rolled out training for key employees including nurses, social assistants and managers to strengthen understanding of the steps that need to be taken, while Viva Energy Australia has provided training to people and culture representatives, health team members and contact officers to be able to respond to disclosures of domestic and family violence, backed by an “initial response checklist” for first responders (Champions of Change Coalition, 2021[22]).

In addition to training for key personnel – such as human resource departments, managers and socio-medical staff – some companies are also establishing awareness, education and training programmes for the wider workforce. These programmes can help to ensure that workers are aware of and connected with the supports available to them, of particular importance given that some workplace surveys have revealed relatively low awareness of workplace policies and programmes on violence. In Ireland, a survey of over 3 000 workers by Forsa trade union revealed that most (8 in 10) were not aware of support available in their workplace (Fórsa, 2022[28]), cited in (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]), while a 2022 national survey of around 3 000 victim-survivors in Australia found that only around a quarter of survey respondents were aware that they had access to a domestic, family and sexual violence policy (26.44%) (McNicol, Fitz-Gibbon and Brewer, 2022[14]). In the United Kingdom, small and large companies alike have rolled out training for all employees, with Lloyds Banking Group providing training for all colleagues on how to identify and offer support for domestic abuse, while Luminary Bakery – a small social enterprise bakery in England – mandated annual safeguarding training for all staff to be able to identify and respond to “red flags” (UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Trade, 2021[21]).

Trade unions have also been engaged in training and awareness activities on IPV, including in the context of measures to address workplace harassment: across countries such as Canada and the United Kingdom, several trade unions have provided training and guidance to their representatives to recognise signs of domestic violence, provide confidential support, and connect workers with appropriate services. In Canada, Unifor negotiated a Women’s Advocate programme, with specially trained workplace representatives working to help women with issues related to workplace harassment, intimate partner violence and abuse, to access workplace and community resources (Unifor, 2013[29]; Unifor, n.d.[30]), while the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in the United Kingdom offers online, interactive learning for union representatives on domestic violence and what they can do to support (TUC, 2021[31]). Peer training and support models have also been deployed in some companies, with trained domestic abuse “champions” working across organisations to identify and respond to signs of abuse and connect victim-survivors with support.

These training programmes can also contribute to fostering a respectful and supportive workplace culture, which can facilitate help-seeking, and from which victim-survivors report great benefit (McNicol, Fitz-Gibbon and Brewer, 2022[14]). How workplace policies are operationalised is critically important: poor implementation can present a barrier to help-seeking, and to participation at work (McNicol, Fitz-Gibbon and Brewer, 2022[14]). In Australia, for instance, some victim-survivors that have accessed domestic violence leave report discriminatory responses, such as being criticised and performance managed for “bringing their personal issues to work”, ultimately leading one victim-survivor to return to the abusive relationship so that they could stay employed (Fitz-Gibbon, Pfitzner and McNicol, 2023[32]). Anti-discrimination law in Australia now includes subjection to family and domestic violence as a protected attribute to prohibit this type of discrimination, including in the workplace (discussed in further detail below). Safe and supportive workplace environments can help to facilitate both help-seeking and continued employment.

2.3. Connecting workers with appropriate supports

Companies have moved to ensure awareness of and access to services through direct provision, assisted provision, or referral to outside services. Experiences of violence can necessitate access to a range of support, including health, financial, housing, childcare and legal assistance, which can be challenging to navigate – particularly on work time (OECD, 2023[33]). Workplaces are stepping up by providing access to services, and dedicated leave to enable victim-survivors to use them (see Box 2).

Box 2. Companies are providing access to family and domestic violence leaves, with collective bargaining and workers’ representatives playing an important role in extending leave entitlements to victim-survivors

Over the past 5‑6 years, some OECD countries have introduced paid domestic violence leave entitlements for employees affected by IPV (discussed in further detail below). Yet, coverage of paid domestic violence leaves remains limited across OECD countries, and employers play an important role in helping to ensure that workers can take time off work to deal with the impacts of violence without fear of losing their jobs.

A growing number of companies are opting to provide family and domestic violence leave to their employees. In Australia, for example, preparations for the implementation of a national leave entitlement showed that around a third of Australian workplaces already voluntarily offered paid family and domestic violence leave, with a census of non-public employers conducted by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency finding that just over a third of organisations (35.3%) offered paid domestic violence leave in 2019‑20, up from 17.1% in 2016‑17 (Workplace Gender Equality Agency, 2022[34]; FairWork Commission, 2022[35]). This sharp increase may have been spurred by implementation of five days of unpaid FDV leave applicable to employees covered by modern awards in 2018, with employers opting to go “over and above” the unpaid entitlement (Fitz-Gibbon, Pfitzner and McNicol, 2023[32]).

Collective bargaining is playing an important role in ensuring adequate protection and leave entitlements for victim-survivors, too. In Europe, some firm-level agreements and sectoral collective agreements extend leave entitlements prescribed by law, with some collective agreements in countries such as France and Spain extending paid leave or other financial assistance to victim-survivors (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]). Telecommunications company Orange in France provided for five days of paid leave in its 2022‑24 agreement, for example, while in Spain the finance and insurance sectoral agreement provides for financial assistance with housing, legal advice and counselling up to EUR 1 000 (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]). In Italy, the 2019 sectoral agreement for the wood, cement, brick and stone sectors extends the entitlement to leave beyond the national entitlement of three months (though still for those certified), while the 2020 collective bargaining agreement between Vodafone Italy and territorial and national trade unions provides for the possibility for reduced working hours and extended paid leave entitlements in some circumstances, amongst other supports (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]); (Pillinger, 2023[36]).

In France, trade unions have also negotiated provisions relating to domestic violence in collective agreements in the context of broader gender and professional equality commitments. A collective bargaining agreement (CBA) concluded between railway operator SNCF and French trade unions CGT, UNSA-Ferroviaire, SUD-Rail and CFDT (2021‑24) sets out measures relating to gender equality in working conditions and pay, for example, in addition to support for victim-survivors of domestic violence, including an entitlement to three days of paid leave for legal or medical consultations, flexible working arrangements (as to time and place of location) and training and awareness-raising measures, amongst others (Baranska and Picard, 2024[18]).

Source: (Workplace Gender Equality Agency, 2022[34]; FairWork Commission, 2022[35]; Fitz-Gibbon, Pfitzner and McNicol, 2023[32]; European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]; Baranska and Picard, 2024[18]).

Where workplaces do offer access to services, delivery models vary, ranging from services and benefits delivered directly by employers, such as medical or financial support; services contracted by employers, including psychological counselling through employee assistance programmes; and/or strong referral pathways to outside services, such as specialised domestic violence services and legal services.

In Australia, property group Mirvac extends up to AUD 5 000 of financial support to employees per “occasion” for medical and housing costs, and childcare costs for permanent employees, while multinational metals and mining company Rio Tinto provides assistance to those who may use violence, including leave to attend accredited family and domestic violence behaviour change programmes, accommodation to enable families experiencing violence to remain safe (i.e. shifting the onus of relocation to the perpetrator, to enable family members to remain at home), and referral to specialist support services (Champions of Change Coalition, 2021[22]).

2.4. Embedding workplace flexibility measures to facilitate safety and employment

Companies have also focused on embedding workplace flexibility measures to enable victim-survivors to address the impacts of violence while maintaining employment, for example by enabling them to reduce or change their working hours to be able to access support that is only available during working hours, and to plan for their and their family’s safety. This can include flexibility in relation to hours, tasks and work location, as well as adaptations to processes, for example having wages paid to another bank account (UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Trade, 2021[21]).

2.5. Employer action can deliver meaningful benefits, within and beyond the workplace

Employer action can deliver meaningful improvements to outcomes. Despite insufficient good-quality evaluations on the impact of workplace supports for victim-survivors, studies suggest that these supports can lead to better awareness of IPV, greater willingness to intervene if employees are experiencing IPV and better (more) provision of information to victim-survivors, with some qualitative studies suggesting that workplace supports can facilitate job retention, at least in the short term (Adhia et al., 2019[20]; Swanberg and Logan, 2005[37]; Swanberg, Macke and Logan, 2007[38]). As companies are scaling up efforts to address violence, there is a significant opportunity for better evaluation, including of interventions targeted to perpetrators, which have historically been lacking (in and out of workplace settings).

Critically, broader measures to promote women’s economic empowerment and tackle discrimination must be central to violence prevention efforts: there are strong links between gender inequality and IPV, and effective prevention strategies must take aim at the discriminatory attitudes that enable abuse to take place. Related to this, the private sector is acting in other ways to prevent and stop IPV outside of the workplace. For example, some employers are also moving to address domestic violence in their supply chains and customer base (Champions of Change Coalition, 2021[22]). In Peru, pharmaceutical company Laboratorios Bagó targeted a violence awareness campaign to young women through products to alleviate menstrual pain, while in Australia banks have been playing an important role in identifying and preventing financial abuse by flagging low-value bank transfers with threatening messages, with one bank launching a police referral pilot that enables victim-survivors to escalate the transactions to police (UN Women, 2020[39]; Commonwealth Bank of Australia, 2023[40]). In France, AXA Insurance now includes support for victim-survivors in home insurance contracts, including legal and psychological support and up to seven days of emergency housing (AXA Insurance, 2025[41]).

Employer networks and trade union networks are also playing an important role in some countries in addressing intimate partner violence and its workplace impacts (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2023[9]). In Europe, the One In Three Women Network – co-founded by the FACE Foundation and the Kering Foundation – is a European Network of companies who have committed to provide support for victim-survivors of violence, and have worked to conduct research, raise awareness, develop policies and produce awareness and training materials (Kering Foundation, n.d.[42]). Trade unions have also worked to address intimate partner violence and its workplace impacts (examples of which are provided above). In Europe, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and its affiliates have taken a range of steps to raise awareness of IPV and to address its workplace impacts, including through ETUC’s 2024 project “safe at work, safe at home, safe online” and the adoption of a resolution “on the offensive to combat gender-based violence in the world of work,” calling for further action through EU social dialogue, amongst other measures.