Marquette University Study Examines How Employers Can Combat Domestic Violence

When employers have supportive policies and when employees utilize them, domestic violence survivors have improved outcomes, according to a new study published by the Institute for Women’s Leadership at Marquette University in Milwaukee.

Andrea Kupfer Schneider, a professor of law and the director of the Institute for Women’s Leadership, led the 18-month study, in which researchers interviewed domestic violence survivors to better understand the impact of domestic violence on employment experiences and guide workplace policies moving forward.

“The global COVID-19 pandemic affected already vulnerable populations in so many ways. ‘Safer-at-Home’ orders were designed to minimize the spread of a deadly virus, but inadvertently increased deadly situations for those in unsafe home environments,” said Professor Schneider.

Co-author Jennica Webster, co-director of the IWL and associate professor of management in the College of Business Administration at Marquette University, added that “even before the pandemic, it was clear that domestic violence impacts the workplace in both safety when domestic violence turns up at work and the hidden economic impact on survivors, the economy, and their employers. We sought out to understand these impacts better and help guide policies and resources so that employers can help mitigate the impact on survivors and the workplace.”

The full report, “A Guide to Better Understanding and Supporting Domestic Violence Survivors in Our Workplaces: When ‘Safer-At-Home’ is Not Actually Safe,” may be downloaded here.