How companies are impacted by gender-based violence? Main findings of the national studies held within the CARVE project research Roza Dimova - Center of Women’s Studies and Policies, Bulgaria
Objective of national studies
Aim: to gather information on initiatives and policies for prevention , protection and reintegration of victims of gender based violence outside the workplace in which the business on national and local level is involved. Methodology: Combination of • desk research • semi-structured interviews with: companies - managers at different levels of responsibility, HR staff, business associations, trade unions, NGOs dealing with GBV, advocacy leaders, public authorities, researchers, etc.
How itactivities happened ? Implemented – Interviews
More than 400 stakeholders contacted in 5 EU countries
Production and service companies, NGOs, Institutions on EU and national level
Mass invitations, targeted official letters, e-mails, follow up phone calls, Linked in
104 interviews in total - Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Greece and Spain 25
20
Other 15
Public NGOs Associations
10
Trade Unions Companies
5
0 Belgium
Bulgaria
France
Greece
Spain
Interviews – Lessons learnt
Eventhough the national contexts and business environment is very different in project countries we may outline some common findings: Gender-based violence is not confined behind closed doors. By affecting the victims, gender violence also displays its effects inside a company. Gender-based violence is not a topic that is easily discussed on the workplace and it is still broadly considered by business to be more a private issue, than a problem of the whole society. What happens in the family is rarely shared outside of it and there are psychological barriers for both staff and management to cooperate in situations of gender-based violence.
Interviews – Lessons learnt
Several reasons can explain that: • Companies in studied countries have not been included in awarenessraising campaigns and they lack information and numbered data regarding the economic impact of gender-based violence. • Corporate stakeholders that could actually support victims are neither trained to detect these persons, nor to accompany them in their search for a solution. • There are no formal internal guidelines or professional guides, developed for the needs of the business.
Interviews – Lessons learnt
• There are no practical procedures for implementation of the law (Spain), neither guidelines and general information tailored to the needs of the business (Bulgaria). • Privacy issue - one of the main obstacles, justifying why companies were not reacting, when suspecting cases of gender-based violence. •Who has the right to intervene in private life of employees?
Detection of cases
Detection of cases on the work place is not a formalised process and usually companies have a case by case approach. Detection depends very much on: • size of the company; • hierarchy established; • relationships in the teams and with the management and the personality of the person, who supports or is in charged of the personnel.
Detection of cases
• Employers become closely concerned and committed, when they have a case in their company and are working close to the victim and can see her suffering. • In teams, composed mostly or entirely of women in small companies, where there is no clear cut subordination, women are sharing more easily between each other, or prefer to share with a woman manager in bigger companies.
Detection of cases
Even without a formal victim detection system, companies identify sometimes not directly cases of abuse: - through requests for housing assistance and transfers of workers between offices in France; - trough requests for financial aid or trough investigation of reasons for long sick leaves in Bulgaria; - trough coaching session for managers in Belgium.
Actors involved
Different actors are involved in the different countries in the detection process: - colleagues, - production and line managers, - owners in small companies, - social workers, - career counsellors, - occupational physicians, and social corporate agents.
Detection of cases • However the detection of women, victims of gender-based violence is still poor and number of victims is under-reported. • There are still assumptions, that economically independent women or women, working in "male" professions could not be victims. • There are misconceptions about the violence: it only affects certain social groups, it is only physical and/or sexual and it is not as common, as one imagines. • Some interviewed companies declared: “We have no victims of violence among our staff, because we have never heard or saw them”.
Why companies do involve?
In small companies the whole working process is influenced. People are not calm and the work is not going well. People ask management to do something. Serious cases of abuse, which endangered the life of a woman employee or caused the death of a woman employee. (Bulgaria and France) Individual initiatives, taken by a single employee (group of employees) who is (are) already educated about violence against women. (France) A successful initial effort - campaign, initiated by business or associations of business, that lead to changes or attracted the public attention and empowered employees to involve. (France and Spain and Bulgaria).
Why companies should involve?
Cases of gender-base violence, outside the workplace are happening in reality every day and some of the national studies discovered very severe examples of bruised women employees, who needed urgent and practical help. Companies, which already faced such cases, shared, that their involvement was crucial, because sometimes the companies are the only place for protection for these women.
What is the role of the company?
• To respond and listen to the needs of the victims; • To provide place of protection (all countries). • By understanding the problem, companies may help the women to keep their jobs and economic independence. • Companies may provide direct support to victims by themselves or in collaboration with other partners – NGOs, city councils, foundations , public bodies (support for a housing, financial support, psychological support, information). • They may refer victims to other specialist (associations/NGOs/shelters/ crisis centers) outside the workplace if there are any around.
What is the role of the company?
• Companies may educate, raise awareness among clients, employees/managers and general public about the phenomenon. • Companies may offer the possibility for their employees to support the social and professional reintegration of women victims and elaborate in cooperation with the NGOs, practical guides for the business.
Recommendations • Need to expand national awareness raising campaigns to companies; • Need to differentiate the responsibilities of companies and other stakeholders (associations) and find cross points; • Need of concrete advices and tools for companies to deal with cases of domestic violence; • Need to address offenders as well as victims (zero tolerance campaigns).
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