Domestic violence victims can get 10 days off work to relocate

There are many stresses that come with interpersonal violence but new legislation means that job security will not be one of them.

Consultation between Ministries of Justice, Social Services and Labour Relations and Workplace Safety has amounted to the Saskatchewan Employment (Interpersonal Violence Leave) Amendment Act, 2017 which came into assent on Dec. 7.

The legislation will “provides survivors of interpersonal violence with 10 days of unpaid leave to access services or to relocate,” said the Saskatchewan government in a press release.

“We know that Saskatchewan has one of the highest rates of police-reported interpersonal violence across Canada,” Don Morgan, the workplace safety minister, said in the release.  “As government and other agencies work toward long-term solutions for this issue, survivors need immediate supports to escape dangerous situations.”

Employees, employees children, and employees who are caring for victims of interpersonal violence are eligible for leave in order to, “seek medical attention; obtain services from a victims services organization; obtain psychological or other professional services; relocate, either temporarily or permanently; or seek legal or law enforcement assistance and attend court appearances.”

Employers are required to provide leave for any employee who has worked a minimum of 13 weeks with the business and are required to keep personal information confidential.

“This legislation is part of a larger effort by government to address the issue of interpersonal violence in Saskatchewan,” Morgan said.  ”We recognize that interpersonal violence is a serious problem for Saskatchewan families.  In addition to this legislation, we need to see a shift in attitudes about acceptable behavior and we need to develop measures to identify and prevent abusive relationships.

This is a great step forward in acknowledging interpersonal and domestic violence, said Louise Schweitzer,  North East Outreach Support and Services’ executive director.

This is happening in epidemic states in Saskatchewan, said Schweitzer, and this legislation is a step forward.

“It’s powerful legislation, as extremely positive move forward for us as a community and a province to supporting victims.”

Unpaid leave means that survivors will be able to access services to address issues with shelter, counselling, and justice.

Interpersonal and domestic violence does not discriminate, said Schweitzer, and it can touch anyone and everyone.

“In rural Saskatchewan, the challenge that we have is the isolation definitely plays a part in availability of services and as a form of violence.”

The legislation is a good start to identifying and moving towards domestic violence as a community issue, said Schweitzer.