Domestic violence against women is all too common. Threats, physical, mental and sexual abuse are frequent in these cases. Sometimes death is the ultimate victimation. But even more subtle forms of abuse are pervasive and often affect the victim at work with the goal of extending the abuser’s power over the victim by inhibiting her ability to hold a job. According to Carmen Pitre, executive director of the Task Force on Family Violence, “The workplace is the most predictable place (for an abuser) to find the woman.” Abusive husbands or lovers harass 74 percent of employed battered women at work. Harassing phone calls and personal visits by the abuser to the workplace create tremendous stress on the victim and danger for both the victim and co-workers, causing an estimated 20 percent of victims to lose their jobs.

Domestic abusers often cause victims to be late for work by limiting transportation options or refusing to handle child care at the last minute. Some deliberately batter victims before a job interview or work event. Others try to deprive the victims of sleep, affecting their ability to function well during the day.

Unavoidable Workplace Implications

Battered employees lose time on the job, costing employers $3-5 billion or more annually. On average, 56 percent of victims are late for work at least five times a month, 28 percent leave early five times a month, 54 percent miss three full days of work a month. Many have difficulty advancing their careers. On-the-job harassment plus the need to appear in court reduce the victim’s ability to maintain employment. Additionally, abused women often suffer from poor health increasing their need for medical care. At least three-quarters of working battered women must use company time to call doctors, lawyers, shelters or counselors. Most have no other choice.

Workplace Training and Security

A survey of corporate security directors ranked domestic violence as a high security problem at their company. Consequently, an increasing number of employers, both large and small, seek training for human resource and security managers. They need to be proactive in preventing domestic violence from causing casualties in the workplace. And they need to learn how to offer protective services to employees who are being victimized, including counseling to help them stay on the job.