Domestic violence

While the HSE excludes the reporting and recording of violent incidents in the workplace as a result of a domestic matter under the RIDDOR regulations, unions argue that domestic violence is very much a workplace issue. Research by the TUC found that more than one in ten of those who experience domestic abuse say it continues in the workplace and nearly nine in 10 workers experiencing domestic abuse said it impacted on their performance at work.

The TUC and its affiliated unions think domestic abuse could be one of the biggest killers of women in the workplace, but say it is hard to be precise because of its exclusion from RIDDOR.

The UNISON public services union led a successful cross-party campaign to ensure that changes were made to the Domestic Abuse Bill to extend abuse protection orders to a victims’ workplace and to ensure that victims stay safe at work. UNISON’s model policy for employers on domestic abuse (see pages 39-40) is also recommended to employers in the statutory guidance framework that supports the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

The BFAWU food workers’ union described legislation on domestic abuse introduced in Northern Ireland as “ground-breaking”. The Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022, requires the government in Northern Ireland to make regulations specifying at least 10 days paid leave in each leave year for workers/employees who are victims/survivors of domestic abuse. A consultation on how to operationalise the provisions ran between July and September 2024.