Work place

Domestic violence and the workplace

 The impact of domestic violence on employees experiencing it can interfere with their performance, productivity, health and safety at work, and attendance record. 

  • It can affect colleagues, who may have to cover for workers, who may be unaware of how to help, or try to fend off the abuser from making unwanted phone-calls or visits, and fear for their own safety.
  • It also affects employers by impacting on the productivity and financial strength and success of the organisation. Organisations also have a legal liability for health and safety, and abusers – who may already know their partner’s work times, phone numbers, colleagues, and security entry systems – pose an increased risk of workplace violence.
  • Perpetrators in the workplace may be abusing work time and resources to continue the abuse, which should also be of concern to employers. There is also a heightened risk if the perpetrator also works within, or has friends within, the same workplace as the abused woman.
A DTI research report (Walby S., The Cost of Domestic Violence, Women and Equality Unit, September 2004) shows that the total cost of domestic violence for the state, employers and victims is around £23 billion. Lost economic output accounts for around £2.7 billion a year. This is the cost of time off work due to injuries. It is estimated that around half of the costs of such sickness absences is borne by the employer and half by the individual in lost wages.
 
By taking action to effectively address domestic violence in the workplace, employers will not only increase employee productivity and morale, and reduce employee turnover, but will also reduce the risk of violence in the workplace and save lives.

Domestic Violence is a workplace issue, affecting employees and employers every working day.

 

 

 What is the cost of domestic violence?

The estimated total cost of domestic violence to society in monetary terms is £23 billion per annum. This figure includes an estimated £3.1 billion as the cost to the state and £1.3 billion as the cost to employers and human suffering cost of £17 billion. The estimated total cost to the state is based on the following:

  • Criminal justice system - £1 billion per annum (this represents one quarter of the criminal justice budget for violent crime including the cost of homicide to adult women annually of £112 million).
  • Health (NHS) - £1.2 billion (including mental health care estimated at an additional £176 million).
  • Social services - £0.25 billion.
  • Housing - £0.16 billion.
  • Civil legal services - £0.3 billion. (Walby, 2004).

The statistics collated by Walby above are recognised as an under-estimate because public services don't collect information on the extent to which their services are used as a result of domestic violence. The research doesn't include costs to those areas for which it was difficult to collect any baseline information - for example cost to social services work with vulnerable adults, cost to education services, the human cost to children, of children moving schools and the impact this has on their education, excludes the cost of therapeutic and other support within the voluntary sector.

 

Taken from women's aid web site. 2008.