Proposed laws have been tabled in Parliament which would entitle domestic abuse victims to paid time off work. However, there is some concern that the legislation could be rushed through the House of Commons without being considered properly by parliamentarians.
The Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave) Bill means victims could make a request to their employer for safe leave, which could be used to find a place of safety, attend police interviews or deal with health issues. Undoubtably this would be a great step forward in offering support to victims and survivors of domestic abuse, however it is important that any legislative change is scrutinised in detail, particularly as it will likely be small- to medium-sized employers which are most impacted. It should also be noted that this is a private members bill, which has not had the usual pre-legislative consultation that other legislation will usually be subject to.
Under the proposals laid before Parliament, domestic violence victims could request up to 10 days of extra annual leave. This could have a cost implication on employers, which may already have a fine line balancing staffing provision with business needs. While larger organisations may have the capacity and financial means to offer extra annual leave to employees, smaller businesses tend to rely on a finite number of people to carry out their day-to-day work. Therefore, any new legislation will need to balance the flexibility for the individual with the needs of the business.
Issues may also arise around confidentiality. Domestic violence is a sensitive issue, requiring employees to disclose personal information to employers. There will have to be proper scrutiny on any burden placed on organisations’ HR teams to hold such sensitive information, and will need to be given enough time to review the processes they have in place, including how personal information is captured and how the informal is kept confidential.
Finally, there is an argument that any time off needed by domestic abuse survivors is already offered under current legislation. For example, the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 gives employees the right to make a request for flexible working from day one of employment, and employers have a statutory duty to consider any requests reasonably, while also juggling business needs.
In summary, any changes to existing flexible-working legislation must be carefully consulted upon, to allow organisations to assess the impact it may have on their business. Considering the proposed changes, it would be useful for employers to review their flexible-working policies in order to determine what impact legislative changes surrounding domestic abuse survivors would have on their business’ operations.
Helen Watson is partner and head of employment law at Aaron and Partners
