Vodafone becomes first company to offer 10 days’ paid leave to domestic-abuse victims across territories

Vodafone has become the first company to offer up to 10 days of paid leave to victims of domestic abuse on a global scale.

The multinational telecoms company will apply the policy in markets across the world, while making specialist support available too.

The multinational says the new measure will give employees who have faced abuse at the hands of their partners time to seek professional help and counselling, attend police or court appointments, make arrangements to move house, and support their children.

It will provide specialist training for human resources managers to enable them to support employees experiencing domestic violence or abuse.

Vodafone Foundation today launched a handbook titled “Toolkit on domestic violence and abuse at work”.

Its author Dr Jane Pillinger said: “More and more companies today are taking the initiative to provide support and paid leave for employees affected by domestic violence and abuse – this helps victims to safely stay in their jobs and to progress in their careers.”

She added Vodafone’s new policy marked a “major step forward” – sending a strong signal to employees that the company takes the issue of domestic violence seriously.

Andrew Dunnett, director of Vodafone Foundation, said: “The results of our research shows the significant impact of domestic violence and abuse on people at work, affecting confidence, self-esteem and career progression. It also reveals how employers can help.”

Some 37 per cent of people the company surveyed had experienced domestic violence and abuse in some form, while 67 per cent of respondents that had experienced such abuse said it affected career-progression.

Half of respondents felt too ashamed to discuss their abuse at work.

The study, which assessed the impact of domestic violence and abuse on people’s work life and career, surveyed 4,715 working women and men across nine countries – the UK, Germany, Ireland, Turkey, South Africa, Kenya, India, Italy and Spain.

Last month, a Scottish council became the first in Europe to offer up to 10 days of paid leave to victims of domestic violence. Last month, councillors in South Ayrshire voted unanimously in favour of the policy which was inspired by a similar measure in New Zealand.

New Zealand became the first country in the world to pass legislation allowing victims of domestic violence paid leave last July.

Vodafone Foundation has also announced the international expansion of Bright Sky – a free app which connects victims of domestic abuse to advice and support services.

The app, which was created with Hestia, a charity which supports adults and children across London in times of crisis, enables users to locate their nearest support centre by searching their area, postcode or current location.

A short questionnaire helps users assess the safety of a relationship and provides information about different forms of abuse, the types of support available, steps to consider if leaving an abusive relationship, and how to help a friend who affected by domestic abuse.

The app, which has been downloaded more than 10,000 times since it became available in the UK since April last year, is also designed to log incidents of domestic abuse without any content being saved on the device itself. It allows users to record incidents in a secure digital journal, using a text, audio, video or photo function.

Evidence pooled can then enable police to intervene and in turn help to secure prosecutions.