Make Domestic Violence "Your Business"

Do you wonder how domestic violence comes into the workplace?  It can come into the workplace in a lot of ways...through an employee coming in worried about abuse at home, or being absent, or ill, or physically injured,or less productive, or in the case of an abuser, using work time to threaten or harass a partner.

Or...it can come in like this:  http://www.pjstar.com/news/x386669662/Two-women-stabbed-at-TitleMax-on-University-Street-on-Friday.

This is an incredibly sad and violent example. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families and their co-workers. (UPDATE: The co-worker of Traci Allen -- Mary Sue Roberts, 27 -- passed away on August 20, 2011. We are so sorry to have to note this.)

When I read this story I thought about all the things that could perhaps have been done to keep this employee and this workplace safe. 

There are no guarantees, of course, but the kinds of things we work with CAEPV members to build into their workplace practices are designed to help prevent these kinds of heartbreaking events.

Things like creating plans for abuser showing up at the workplace. Or the workplace on the order of protection, working with local law enforcement, moving the employee in danger to another workplace location, changing work hours, getting the abused employee to resources to assist her/him....the list goes on and on.

It is timely that open registration begins August 24 for our September 23 webinar "Domestic Violence and the Workplace: Three Case Studies in Practice."

That means any employer can register for our free webinar as of August 24 - courtesy of a grant from HopeLine from Verizon. If you are an employer who is interested, please send an email to caepv@caepv.org.

We hope employers will take advantage.  So that perhaps there will be fewer and fewer incidents like what happened at the Title Max on Friday in Peoria, Illinois.

We want a day when all employers have the tools to make domestic violence "their business." 

Please join us.

Free Webinar "Addressing Domestic Violence in the Workplace: An EAP/Employer Partnership" (November 12, 2009)

DUE TO OVERWHELMING INTEREST, REGISTRATION FOR THIS WEBINAR IS NOW CLOSED. AN AUDIO/VIDEO RECORDING OF THE WEBINAR WILL BE AVAILABLE SHORTLY AFTER IT IS COMPLETED.

Addressing Domestic Violence in the Workplace: An EAP/Employer Partnership is an educational opportunity provided through the ongoing work of the national S2 - Safer, Smarter Workplace project.

WHEN:

Thursday, November 12, 2009
2:00 - 3:30 p.m. ET
1:00 - 2:30 p.m. CT
11:00 - 12:30 p.m. PT

WHY:

A recent survey of CEOs found that most believe domestic violence to be a serious issue, yet 71% did not believe it is a problem in their company. The reality is that approximately 21% of full-time working adults report being a victim of domestic violence.

This webinar will examine: current research findings discussing the experience of abused women who sought help with EAPs, examples of EAP collaboration with Human Resources, Employee Relations and Corporate Security to address specific incidents of domestic violence, and a detailed case study of one employer's response to domestic violence.

PRESENTERS:

• Bob McCullough, Manager Critical Incidents/Workplace Supports, Magellan Health Services
• Keshia Pollack, Department of Public Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
• John Cantrell, Assistant Director, Corporate Security and Investigations, CIGNA Corporation
• Kerrie Loyde, Senior Manager, Global Employee Relations, Gap Inc.

RSVP:

THE WEBINAR IS FREE, BUT REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED.

The deadline for registration is Tuesday, November 10, 2009. However, registrations will be taken on a first-come, first-serve basis, so register early!

Click here to register for the webinar.


The S2 - Safer, Smarter Workplace conference was presented by the Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence. This conference was made possible by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, with additional support provided by The Allstate Foundation, the Blue Shield of California Foundation, CALCASA, Health Care Service Corporation, and Texas Health Resources.


The Technology Sponsor for the conference was the Verizon Foundation.


The conference planning workgroup includes representatives from the following organizations: Chestnut Global Partners; CIGNA; Gap Inc.; Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Macy's West; Magellan Health Services; OptumHealth Behavioral Solutions.

S2 Webinar: "Domestic Violence and the Workplace - A Multi-Disciplinary Approach from Liz Claiborne Inc." Audio/Video Recording Now Available!

On August 25 we held the S2 Webinar: Domestic Violence and the Workplace – A Multi-Disciplinary Response from Liz Claiborne. It was a wonderful session thanks to the representatives of the Domestic Violence Response Team (DVRT) of Liz Claiborne and we are so thankful to them for time and expertise.

An audio/visual recording of the webinar is now available for download at http://www.caepv.org/about/program_detail.php?refID=48. All materials are also available for download there.

Please also review previous webinars and all materials from our S2 project at http://www.caepv.org/action/S2.php.

If you do check it out, let me know what you think!