What California Employers Need to Know to Prevent Domestic Violence Related Workplace Violence

Domestic violence doesn’t just happen behind closed doors. It can and does spill over into the workplace with deadly results. 

Some of California’s most horrific workplace violence incidents, the 2011 Seal Beach hair salon, the 2023 Trabuco Canyon restaurant and bar, and the 2018 Aliso Viejo spa massacres, all involved domestic violence. 

In this video, I’ll go over why it’s critical for California employers to include the risk of domestic violence incidents spilling over into the workplace when creating their workplace violence prevention programs that must be in place by July 1, 2024.

Hi, I’m Mike Corwin. I help employers implement an effective workplace violence prevention program that keeps employees safer, and complies with the requirements of California’s new workplace violence prevention law.

My approach to preventing workplace violence is based upon what I learned during my 30+ years of working as a civil and criminal litigation investigator where I investigated many work related violence incidents, and learned to keep myself safe from violence while working in some very dangerous places.

California requires employers to have a workplace violence prevention program in place by July 1, 2024. I’ve got a great tool to help you get started developing your prevention program. My FREE workplace violence prevention checklist. It is a road map you can follow as you develop a workplace violence prevention plan. Click here to download now.

How Big A Safety Risk Is Domestic Violence To Women In the Workplace?

 Women are murdered on the job at a higher percentage than men. According to a 2019 study of people killed in the workplace, 20.1% of women were murdered, compared to just 7.5% of men.

And the majority of the women murdered, were killed by someone they knew whether a current or former partner, a family member, or someone they knew through their work.

One study, conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ("NIOSH"), found that 78% of women murdered in the workplace by someone they knew, were killed by a current or former intimate partner. 

Why Does Domestic Violence Spillover Into the Workplace?

 According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, intimate partner violence affects more than 12 million people annually in the US. 35.6% of women in the US experience rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner.

Even if a domestic violence victim leaves her abusive partner, she still needs to make a living. And, that’s what makes her so vulnerable to violence at her workplace. Domestic violence abusers know that their victims works at a specific location. And that’s critical to understanding domestic violence related workplace violence. Because even if she moves away from their home, or gets a restraining order, she can still be found easily by an abuser because she has to keep on working. And that’s usually at the same workplace she worked at while they were together.

In a domestic violence workplace violence incident, the attacker needs to gain access to the victim. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety, most workplace violence killings of woman, done by a current or former intimate partner, occur in parking lots, or in work areas that are publicly accessible.

And it’s not just women as employees who are at risk. The bombing of a day spa in California that killed the owner, and two patrons, was targeted killing of the owner, by her ex-partner. 42% of businesses in America are women owned. And owning a business, also requires that you show up, day in and day out.

And, while current and former intimate partners are the most likely source of domestic violence related workplace violence, it’s not the sole source. And when designing a workplace violence prevention program it’s important to remember that domestic violence can occur from other family members as well. 

How to Address Domestic Violence Risks in Your Workplace Violence Prevention Program

As employers put together a workplace violence prevention program, focusing on these elements can help lessen the risk of domestic violence spilling over into the workplace.

•  Parking Lot Safety. Parking lots are designed to provide ease of access to members of the public. It’s about making it as easy as possible for the public to go from the parking lot to the main entrance. And even when employees park in a different parking lot than the public, those locations are still typically accessible to the public on foot, if not by car. So employers should begin focusing on preventing workplace violence related to domestic violence by assessing their parking lots for safety hazards. This assessment should include, lighting, location of large objects, such as dumpsters, walls, or shrubs, that can serve as a hiding place, or alternatively, obstruct the view of employees while walking through the parking lot. Employers should also assess for obstructions and hiding locations along the walking routes from the building entrance to the parking area. Shrubbery, and other intrusive elements should be cut back away from the walkway or thinned out. Using the buddy system as a safety approach should also be incorporated as policy too. Employees undergoing domestic violence issues should be accompanied by a co-worker when walking to her vehicle in order to reduce her chances of being isolated by an attacker. 
•  Communication Regarding Domestic Violence. Employers must have a way to ensure that any employee experiencing domestic violence can communicate what is occurring in her life. Employers often prefer to separate employees’ private lives from their work lives, but domestic violence is too dangerous for a hands off approach. Create a confidential reporting process for anyone experiencing domestic violence, or threats of violence, to be able to report what is taking place. And to discuss with your employee the safety protocols that are to be followed. California’s new workplace violence prevention law allows for employers to obtain restraining orders to help protect employees from an abuser.. But in the end, an order’s protections are limited. Obtaining a restraining order is most beneficial for serving notice to an abuser to stay away from the workplace. Hopefully, doing so keeps him away. If he arrives on premises, you can call the police to report an abuser on premises. But, the order won’t physically prevent the abuser from entering. Employers should also implement a code word communication process that allows someone concerned about her safety to communicate that concern to co-workers through a code word, without drawing attention to herself and further angering the abuser. Code words are especially effective, when an employee has been pressured by an abuser to meet at the workplace, and the employee doesn’t feel that she can say no.
•  Visitor Check-in Policies and Training. A familiar face who regularly visits a place of work is much more likely to gain access than a total stranger. He is also more likely to know how to bypass gatekeepers. Front desk staff, in those businesses that have them, can be distracted by work duties, and wave through a familiar face. So it’s critical for employers to implement a multistage visitor check-in approach. One that requires notification and approval by the person being visited before a visit, and again upon arrival by the guest. 

None of these approaches are foolproof. But, combined together, they’re a good start at an effective an approach for reducing the risk of domestic violence turning into workplace violence.

Want to get started on developing the required workplace violence prevention program by the July 1, 2024 deadline? Download my FREE workplace violence prevention checklist. It’s a great road map for you to follow as you develop a workplace violence prevention plan. Click here to download.

If you’d like some help establishing, creating, and implementing the workplace violence prevention program required by the new California law, click here and schedule a free telephone consultation.