One woman in Australia dies at the hand of her partner every 10 days.
White Ribbon Day is on 18 November 2022.
White Ribbon Australia is an Australian organisation, which holds fundraisers and the annual White Ribbon Day to raise awareness in relation to mens’ violence against women. This is a social issue that affects many Australians.
White Ribbon believes that men and women have a role in preventing violence against women and engaging all parties is critical to prevention. White Ribbon uses the definition of mens’ violence against women found in the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women:
“Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life.”
The Federal Government has recently approved the amendment to the Fair Work Act which provides for 10 days paid domestic and family violence leave in a 12 month period for all employees, whether fulltime, parttime or casual. The amendment increases the entitlement from 5 unpaid days to 10 paid days. The amendment also extends the definition of family and domestic violence to include conduct by current or former intimate partner of an employee or a member of the employee’s household.
The new paid entitlements will commence on 1 February 2023.
As White Ribbon Day approaches, we should reflect on the statistics and how important legislation, such as 10 days paid domestic and family violence leave, may be for women in domestic violence situations.
Kristy Nunn is a director of the Dispute Resolution & Litigation Group at Mullane & Lindsay. Mullane & Lindsay.
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