Domestic Violence and Employment: an Examination into Retail Employer's Awareness of and Responses to the Impacts of Domestic Violence on the Workplace

There is increased recognition that employees need to maintain a balanced work-home life in order to be successful and productive. One of the major threats to attaining this equilibrium is 'personal' issues such as HIV/AIDS, trauma and domestic violence. Such issues not only have economic impacts on a business' bottorn line, but there are also social impacts that affect employment relations. The problem is further compounded by the difficulties that employers face in determining first the manner in which social problems become 'workplace' problems, and secondly, in deciding how they can meaningfully intervene. This research provides an exposé of the manner in which domestic violence related issues are perceived and dealt with in the South African workplace. The research specifically focuses on establishing whether employers in the c!othing, footwear and textile (CFI') retail sector are aware of the impacts of domestic violence on workplace relations.Questionnaires were sent out and interviews held with senior human resources managers at eight of South Africa' s biggest clothing retail groups. Respondents were asked to identify what domestic violence was; to identify its socio-economic impacts and how these affected a business. Respondents were also asked to identify ways in which employers could meaningfully address domestic violence related issues in the workplace. Findîngs suggested that whereas employers are aware of the debilitating effects of domestic violence, they are sometimes unsure of how to address such a 'persona)' problem. The conflict emanates from the conflict arising from trying to attain a balance between acting within a socially responsive manner, with meeting the business needs without invading an individuals' persona! space. Because of the difficulties employers face in transcending the perceived boundaries between 'public' and 'private' concerns, some of these social problems are not effectively addressed, even though they may have negative impacts on a business. This problem is exacerbated by the absence of guidelines on how employers should address domestic violence. Findings also suggested that the first step towards resolving such problems lies first in the
ability of employers to identify the manner in whkh a social problem impacts on a business, and, secondly determining the best way in which employers can utilise existing resources and liaise with social service providers to address these concerns. Domestic violence is a prevalent social problem that requires the intervention of ail segments of society. Employers need to start acting now, before the debilitating effects begin to disrupt workplace productivity on a larger scale.