Federal legislation would secure workplace rights of domestic violence victims. (News & Trends).

As many as 50 percent of victims of domestic violence lose a job due at least in part to the violence, and almost as many survivors of sexual assaults lose their jobs or are forced to quit in the aftermath of the crime, according to U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.).

Wellstone and other lawmakers have introduced the Victims' Economic Security and Safety Act (VESSA). The act would require employers to allow emergency leave in certain circumstances to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and would prohibit employers from discriminating against victims. Violators would be liable for monetary damages and equitable relief, including reinstatement and promotion.

The act would also mandate unemployment compensation for workers forced to leave their jobs due to domestic or sexual violence, and would prohibit insurers from discriminating based on a person's history of abuse.

Geoff Boehm, staff attorney for the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, a women's rights advocacy organization, said VESSA is "the necessary further step," after the 1994 passage of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), in protecting victims.

"VAWA took major steps forward in increasing awareness of domestic violence and in providing services for victims," he said, "but those of us who work in advocacy see it again and again: A victim of abuse may be able to get a protective order and even some police protection--and might get some services but she ends up losing her job."

Abusers often sabotage their victims' jobs, causing them to be fired, Boehm said, by disrupting the workplace with frequent phone calls or visits. Some victims lose their jobs due to frequent absences for court dates or other reasons related to the abuse, and some are fired as a result of "out-and-out discrimination" based on the abuse, Boehm added.

According to VESSA's findings, domestic and sexual violence have a "dramatic" effect in the workplace. For example:

* About 11 percent of all rapes occur in the workplace.

* Studies show that between 35 percent and 56 percent of employed battered women were harassed at work by their abusive partners.

* Ninety-four percent of corporate security directors at companies nationwide rank domestic violence as a high security concern.

The act "addresses the most important economic barriers that prevent victims from leaving their batterer or abuser [and] protects victims from violence in the workplace," Wellstone said. By forcing employers to deal with issues of domestic and sexual violence, VESSA will not only protect victims, but will also "mitigate the negative economic effects of violence on employers and on the national economy," Wellstone added.

According to the Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence, a national nonprofit organization, businesses in the United States pay an estimated $3 billion to $5 billion per year in medical expenses associated with domestic violence. They lose an additional $100 million per year in lost wages, sick leave, absenteeism, and decreased productivity.

Despite these costs, few employers have implemented domestic violence policies, said Boehm. The act would provide an incentive for companies to develop these policies: It would amend the Internal Revenue Code to provide a tax credit for 40 percent of the costs incurred by an employer in implementing safety and education programs to combat the effects of domestic and sexual violence in the workplace.

Boehm said federal legislation is necessary because few states protect victims of abuse, and the protections that are offered are inconsistent. For example, Boehm said, only 17 states explicitly provide unemployment insurance to domestic violence victims, and none covers victims of sexual assault or stalking. Only two states provide domestic violence victims with leave to address the violence, and only Maine provides leave to victims of sexual assault and stalking. No state explicitly prohibits employment discrimination against victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.

Employer reaction to VESSA has been positive, according to Boehm.

"This law will give employees the courage to come forward and talk with their employers about abuse, and help them come up with ways to deal with it. Employers recognize that safety planning is good business," he said.

Boehm is optimistic about the act's chances for success because of the support of employers and labor unions, and because when VAWA was nearly unanimously reauthorized in 2000, Congress almost doubled the funds allocated to implementation efforts. "Between 1994 and 2000, the public and members of Congress came a long way in understanding the problem" of domestic and sexual violence, Boehm said.

VESSA was referred to the Senate Finance Committee after introduction, and a companion bill in the House was referred to committees on August 16.