Merseyside charity backs calls to give domestic abuse victims 'safe leave'
A bill is due to be presented to the House of Commons
A Merseyside charity is urging MPs to back a new bill that would give domestic abuse victims paid time off work to help them stay safe.
Labour MP Alex McIntyre is looking to introduce a proposed law to the House of Commons today (7 January) to ask that people experiencing domestic abuse be allowed several days of 'safe leave'.
It's aimed at helping them with addressing issues related to the abuse - including finding a place of safety, dealing with health issues and going to police interviews.
He wants ten days of 'safe leave', but that is subject to consultation.
Neil Frackelton, chief executive at Sefton Women's and Children's Aid, said:
"I think it's an excellent idea. There is no doubt that in our experience, victim survivors who are working, if they have a good connection with their employer around the issue, it can make a significant difference. Quite a lot of our victim survivors who are employed are quite anxious about talking to their employer about their experiences for a number of reasons.
The obvious one is the risk of losing their job, because if they need to take time off. Perhaps they don't have enough leave. The danger is they will be seen as maybe somebody who's not as committed to the role, where in fact they're actually experiencing the trauma of domestic abuse.
Perhaps they don't have enough leave. The danger is they will be seen as maybe somebody who's not as committed to the role, where in fact they're actually experiencing the trauma of domestic abuse. So I think it's got a very good chance of making victim survivors less reluctant to talk to their employers about their needs because I know there'll be some legislative back up around that and it would also reduce the fear that victim survivors may feel if their employer finds out without that sort of legal backing, they may become somehow less employable and perhaps a less valuable economic commodity.
There's some businesses may may who do not understand domestic abuse and the impact and the trauma that it might have.
It might also encourage victim survivors to reach out to their employers a little bit more for emotional and practical support because employers can often underestimate how much support they can actually give their staff.
Research says that businesses lose a lot of hours through incidents of domestic abuse, but if there was more legal backing around paid time off, those hours will probably reduce because employees would feel more engaged and more supported while in the workplace."
Mr McIntyre will try to introduce the bill to the Commons using the 10-minute rule process.
He will have up to ten minutes to make a speech on why he wants to introduce his bill and any MP who wants to oppose it can also make a ten-minute speech.
The House will then decide whether or not the bill should be introduced.
If successful, Mr McIntyre will set a date for when he would like it to be debated at second reading.