Sue a victim survivor of domestic violence shared her story with me of how domestic violence impacted in her workspace.
She had to attend a sales conference which was held out of town and all the top management were attending, they drove in several cars to the venue which was several hours away and left early in the morning. It had been arranged that they would stop over at a dam for breakfast, this delayed them in arriving and checking in to the hotel.
When they arrived at the hotel several people told her to report to reception immediately, there was a pile of messages to phone her ex husband, lets call him Joe, all were urgent, there were a few from her mother as well, she thought that something had happened to one of her children who were very young at the time and were at home with the nanny and Joe. She phoned her mother first, her mother said "are you okay" because Joe had phoned her several times saying he is worried that something had happened to her as he estimated it should only take so many hours and she had not arrived. Sue told her they had stopped for breakfast and that everything was fine and that she would phone him. Sue then phoned Joe from the reception. He screamed so loud that the hotel staff and others that were checking in could hear him screaming at her, he accused her of stopping on the way and having sex with a coworker. She kept trying to tell him that they had all stopped for breakfast but he did not believe her, he never did, people could see that she was visibly upset, it was not long and everybody knew about Joe's calls. Her intimate partner violence was not a private matter anymore, back then she knew very little about domestic violence and companies even less so.
It did not stop there, he would phone Sue several times a day, before breakfast, at lunch time, before and after dinner, mobile phones were not a thing yet. She would have to run back to the room because if she was not there when he called it was trouble, he threatened to drive down if she did not take his calls. If her room mate was on a call to her husband when he called, they would cut her call and put Joe through, everybody knew about Joe. Her colleagues tried their best to support her, her seniour manager even spoke to him once because Sue was not available to take his call, it was very embarrassing for her. She eventually had to leave that company as there were several occasions that she could not attend company functions because it would cause trouble for her.
One occasion her married seniour manager took advantage of her vulnerability, his comforting became frequent and eventually they had sex. Sue lived in constant fear that Joe would find out.
The next company Sue joined did not have many staff members and less company functions and that was a conscious choice to avoid problems for herself and in her workspace. Due to being less members people were more observant and she could not conceal the bruises as well as she had been able to and people started noticing them. A male colleague was the first, he asked her if everything was okay at home as he had seen the bruises and he noticed that somedays Sue was not herself. When she told him he was so incensed that he threatened to find Joe and give him a hiding, Sue pleaded with him not to as it would just create more trouble. She eventually resigned from that company, and took an office job where she had little contact with men and their pay was substantially less than what she had been earning, Sue was also more isolated now.
Her domestic abuse not only impacted on her but it impacted on her work and her colleagues, her pay cut made her more dependent on him. Some days she did not go to work because either she had not slept or he had assaulted her, some days while she was at work her productivity was very low because she was either processing what had happened or fearful of what was going to happen. At one stage she weighed 43 kilograms from the stress. Sue did eventually leave Joe.
Sometimes the workspace is the only safe space for victims.
Gender based violence is a broad - term for various forms of abuse inflicted on individuals, it is multifaceted and embedded in personal, situational and social-cultural contexts based on gender norms and unequal power relations which is embedded in biases and discrimination. The different forms of GBV are sexual harassment, sexual violence, physical violence, coercive and controlling behavior, intimidation, harassment, discrimination, psychological and emotional violence, stalking and cyber bullying.
It's become increasingly evident that addressing gender-based violence is not just a moral imperative but also a business necessity.
Not all organizations have a clear policy and code of conduct that explicitly addresses harassment in the workplace and supports employees who are victims of domestic violence, it is critically important for all employers to have a policy in place against any form of harassment in the workplace and included in the policy how to support employees who experience domestic violence.
Employers across the globe have demonstrated their ability to prioritize staff health and well-being, especially during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic. They've implemented new systems and protocols to maintain productivity while ensuring their employees feel supported and valued.
Gender-based violence affects everyone, everywhere - at work, at ho
me, and in social settings. And it's up to all of us to address it, not just during designated awareness periods but every single day.
According to the Code of Good Practice outlined in The Employment Equity Act of 1998, employers have a duty to prevent, eliminate, and manage all forms of harassment in the workplace. This not only fosters a culture of equity and equality but also safeguards the well-being of your staff.
The costs of gender-based violence are staggering, both economically and emotionally. In South Africa alone, it's estimated to cost between R28.4 and R42.4 billion per year due to decreased productivity, lost wages, and other related expenses. And the impact doesn't stop there - it affects the morale of your employees and tarnishes your organization's reputation.
But there is hope. By taking proactive steps to address gender-based violence in the workplace, we can make a difference.
Together, we can create a safer, more supportive workplace for everyone. Let's stand united against gender-based violence and make a positive impact in our organizations and communities.
Safe Work Dynamics are trainings and courses we offer for businesses:
Creating awareness of gender-based violence in the workplace,
Domestic violence and the impact in the workplace,
Developing policies for the workplace,
Client vulnerability policy,
Assist in awareness campaigns.
To book a consultation email me at felicity@felicityguest.com
Strategies for changing individual behaviour and mindsets of everyone involved in the world of work need to work alongside shifts in workplace practices and policies.
The South African workplace can be a micro-system of the broader society where violence is pervasive, employees are both victims and perpetrators, but the workplace also has the potential for being a space free of GBV.
Whilst GBV is not discriminatory it disproportionately affects women and other marginalised groups who make up the LGBTQ+++ community. One in two women and one in five men experience abuse, it is for this reason that when we talk about GBV we normally refer to women being victims taking into account the other influences which contribute to women and other marginalised groups of people being more vulnerable to abuse.
Make a commitment and take action, we can all play a part in stopping this epidemic.
Comments