District Attorney Quinn to Conduct Free Seminar for Area Businesses
District Attorney Quinn to Conduct Free Seminar for Area Businesses
What Employers Need to Know: Understanding How Domestic Violence Affects Your Workplace and Your Legal Responsibilities as an Employer
Bristol County District Attorney Tom Quinn’s office is partnering with Employers Against Domestic Violence to conduct a free seminar for area employers, business owners, supervisors, and managers. The seminar, “What Employers Need to Know: Understanding How Domestic Violence Affects Your Workplace and Your Legal Responsibilities as an Employer,” will provide area businesses with a wide array of information to improve the workplace environment and reduce workplace costs directly related to domestic violence issues at the home.
The event will take place Friday, May 29, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. in the Grand Library Reading Room at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, located at 285 Old Westport Rd in North Dartmouth. Opening remarks will be offered by District Attorney Quinn at 9:00 a.m. The media is invited and encouraged to attend.
As part of District Attorney Quinn’s ongoing efforts to reduce the impact of domestic violence in the county, the free seminar will aid employers by educating them on domestic violence, new legislation that affects them, and informing them about the impact domestic violence has on the workplace. The goal is to help employers develop tailored workplace policies and procedures; give them the knowledge to train other managers, supervisors and employees; provide resources for their employees; and explain both legal mandates and how their workplace can support employees facing violence.
Presentations will include:
- Courtney Cahill, Chief of the District Attorney’s Domestic Violence Unit to address legal responsibilities under the new legislation
- Dale Brown of Fall River’s Stanley Street Treatment and Resources (SSTAR) and Rebecca Arruda of The New Bedford Women’s Center to address domestic violence “101” and the perspective of victims
- Dan Buckley of SSTAR’s Batterer Intervention Program to address the dynamics of an abuser’s behavior
- Survivor accounts of domestic violence
- Experts in the field and discussion on best practices for companies to address domestic violence as it affects the workplace
While domestic violence is often considered an issue that occurs within one’s home, statistics show that the effects of domestic violence often transfer to the workplace. The cost of domestic violence to the US economy is more than $8.3 billion. This cost includes medical care, mental health services, and lost productivity (the annual cost of lost productivity due to domestic violence is $727.8 million with more than 7.9 million paid workdays – the equivalent of more than 32,000 full time jobs – lost each). According to a survey conducted by Employers Against Domestic Violence, 74% of battered women were harassed by their partners while at work, while 71% of employers report an employees who were victims of domestic violence were stalked while at work.
This half-day conference is free of charge. A complimentary breakfast will be served. Space is limited. Register online at www.bristolda.com. You may also email Ashley.L.Bendiksen@state.ma.us or call 508-997-0711 ext. 1824.
This event is being conducted by the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office in partnership with Employers Against Domestic Violence. It is sponsored in part by the Umass Dartmouth Center for Women, Gender, and Sexuality, BayCoast Bank, Bristol County Savings Bank, Bank Five. Promotional partners include the New Bedford Chamber of Commerce and the Fall River Chamber of Commerce.
Contacts:
Gregg Miliote
Director of Communications
508-997-0711
774-292-9576-after hours
Ashley Bendiksen
Program Coordinator
508-997-0711
774-929-5614-after hours
Ashley L. Bendiksen
Executive Assistant
Bristol County District Attorney’s Office
888 Purchase Street
New Bedford, MA 02740
Office: 508-997-0711 ext. 1824
Cell: 774-929-5614