Victims of domestic violence could get up to 10 days paid leave for time off related to their abuse under plans considered by MPs this week.
Many victims are unable to go to work due to the physical and mental abuse they suffer, or if they need to flee their abusive homes or get their children to safety. Others are forced to take sick leave for police, court or health appointments, with many women losing money or their jobs after taking too much time off.
New regulations to ensure victims and survivors are not punished for taking time off work for things related to their abuse will be discussed in Parliament this week. Legislation to allow domestic abuse victims to have paid leave already exists around the world. In Northern Ireland, new laws, which passed in 2022, have been going through consultations to become enacted, while laws exist for “Safe Leave” in countries like Australia.
Labour MP Alex McIntyre, who was only elected as an MP in July’s election, said a constituent’s “heartbreaking” case of domestic abuse in his first week in the job sparked the fight in him to change the law here at home. The former employment lawyer, who couldn’t give the details of the case, told the Mirror: “I met with the victim-survivor and her mum and it really hit me with full force.
“It was one I took away and was incredibly emotional about, and thought, we’ve got to do more. Then looking at how can I help, and my background, being an employment lawyer – this is a gap in employment law that we can help try to fill.”
On Tuesday the MP for Gloucester will put forward a ten-minute rule motion called Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave). Such motions allow backbench MPs to make their case for a new Bill in a speech lasting up to ten minutes. It is difficult for ten-minute rule motions to become law but they give an opportunity for various issues to be raised in the Commons.
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Mr McIntyre said: “It might not lead to a change in the law immediately, but we can start having those conversations on a national level about how we can best support people.” He referenced the “tireless” work his party was already doing to achieve its target to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, adding: “This is just meant to complement that and to try and keep that conversation going from the backbenches.”
Women who have been a victim of abuse lose around £5,800 each year, according to a 2019 study by Vodafone and KPMG. Official estimates suggest the social and economic costs of domestic abuse are in the region of £78billion (2022/23 prices) over a three-year average period of abuse.
A Government spokesman said: “This Government has set an ambitious mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade and announced a series of new measures to tackle this appalling crime and strengthen the police response to domestic abuse.”