Every year from 25 November to 10 December, the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign calls on governments, workplaces and communities to confront violence against women and girls.
In Australia, the statistics are painfully familiar. Around one in four women have experienced violence by an intimate partner since the age of 15. Intimate partner violence contributes to more death, disability and illness in women aged 25 to 44 than any other preventable risk factor. More than 70 per cent of all calls to 1800RESPECT, Australia’s national domestic, family and sexual violence support service, are from women.
Then something else happens. We move from activism into the end of year rush, close offices, switch on out of office replies and talk about downtime.
For many women and gender diverse people, this is not a safe time at all.
Data from Victoria shows that police recorded significantly more family violence incidents in December than the monthly average. New South Wales analysis has found that New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day see some of the highest levels of domestic violence assaults of the year. Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year regularly show up as peak days for domestic and non-domestic assaults.
So while many workplaces wind down and close their doors, the risk of harm at home goes up.
We often talk about this violence as if it sits neatly inside private homes or courtrooms. In reality, it walks into work with people every day.
If you manage people, especially women, there is a good chance that at some point in your career someone will sit in front of you and say a sentence like:
“I do not feel safe at home.”
The question is not whether this will happen. The question is whether you and your organisation will be ready.
Domestic violence is a psychosocial risk at work
Violence and coercive control are not only physical. They include emotional and psychological abuse, financial abuse, social isolation and tech-facilitated abuse. These harms affect physical and mental health, and they also affect concentration, attendance, performance and safety at or through work.
Safe Work Australia’s guidance on psychosocial hazards makes it clear that employers must eliminate or minimise psychosocial risks so far as reasonably practicable. Family and domestic violence is now recognised as one of those risks where it affects workers at, or in connection with, their job – for example through harassment at the workplace, during work travel, or in work from home arrangements.
Alongside this, most workers in Australia now have access to ten days of paid family and domestic violence leave each year, including casual employees.
This is not just a personal issue. It is a work health and safety issue, an economic issue and a leadership capability issue.
The manager you do not want to be
Many managers recognise this pattern, even if they have never named it.
A team member starts to pull back. They seem tired, distracted, less engaged. Emails slip. Deadlines become harder to meet. From the outside, it looks like a performance problem.
What you do not see are the late night arguments, constant messages from a controlling partner or ex-partner, the fear of being followed on the way to work, the exhaustion of hiding bruises or explaining why the car has another dent.
In that situation, there are two broad kinds of response.
- The manager who focuses only on performance, escalates to a performance management plan, and unintentionally deepens the person’s fear and instability.
- The manager who is curious, notices the change and has built enough psychological safety that the person can say, “Something is going on” – and, sometimes, “I do not feel safe at home.”
No manager is expected to handle that moment perfectly or have all the answers. That is the role of specialist services. There is, however, a basic level of preparedness the role demands. No one wants to be the manager who is so unprepared that they close a door instead of opening one.
What a supportive workplace looks like
A supportive workplace does not try to be the police, the courts or a counselling service. Instead, it pays attention to four things: culture, policy, training and connection to specialist support.
1. Culture – noticing and believing
You cannot support what you refuse to see.
Leaders can:
- Pay attention to changes in behaviour, attendance and performance without jumping straight to blame
- Normalise conversations about wellbeing and psychosocial risk in regular check ins
- Use simple, non-invasive questions such as, “You do not seem yourself at the moment. Is there anything going on that you would like support with”
The aim is not to interrogate. It is to open a door.
If someone does disclose, the basics of a trauma-informed response are straightforward:
- Listen without judgement
- Avoid pressing for details
- Acknowledge that they deserve to be safe at home and at work
- Ask what support from work would help right now
2. Policy – clear, accessible and referenceable
Domestic and family violence policies should not be buried in a forgotten PDF.
A good policy:
- Uses plain language and recognises that abuse can be physical, emotional, psychological, financial and tech-facilitated
- Explains exactly what an employee is entitled to, including paid family and domestic violence leave, flexibility, confidentiality and protection from adverse action
- Includes clear information about external supports such as 1800RESPECT, the Leaving Violence Program and relevant local services
This applies to large and small organisations alike. One practical model is to explicitly build domestic and family violence provisions into employee guidelines and contracts, so people know what is available without having to ask at an already distressing time. The principle is simple: do not make people work harder to find support when they are already surviving violence.
3. Training – responding to disclosures
Most leadership programmes still focus heavily on performance, budgets and generic difficult conversations. Few include what to do when someone says, “I am not safe at home.”
Targeted training on psychosocial hazards and responding to disclosures can change that. Using resources from 1800RESPECT and specialist organisations, workplaces can equip leaders to:
- Respond calmly and validate the disclosure
- Respect confidentiality and clarify what can be shared
- Discuss workplace options such as leave, flexibility or adjusted duties
- Offer to connect the person with HR, an employee assistance programme or external services, if they want that
Managers do not need to be therapists. They do need to know what sits within their role and where to link people for specialist help.
Government supports every manager should know about
During 16 Days, many organisations share statistics and social tiles. Fewer ask a practical question: if someone in your team is planning to leave a violent relationship, do you know what concrete supports exist and how to point them in the right direction
One key initiative is the national Leaving Violence Program. It supports eligible victim-survivors leaving a violent intimate partner with up to twelve weeks of tailored support. This includes up to $5,000 in financial assistance – with a portion available as cash or cash equivalent and the remainder in goods and services – alongside safety planning, risk and needs assessments and referrals.
Knowing that this exists allows a manager to say something like:
“There is a government programme that can help with money and safety planning if you decide you want to leave. We can look at the Leaving Violence Program website together, or I can help you connect with someone who can support you through the process.”
That sentence does not fix everything. For someone who has been economically controlled or isolated, it can be a turning point.
Alongside this, every manager in Australia should at least know the basics about 1800RESPECT, the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service, which provides confidential support by phone, text and online chat 24 hours a day. Their website also hosts a substantial range of training and resources for workplaces.
For people with disability, the Sunny app is a particularly important tool. Sunny is 1800RESPECT’s free app for people with disability who have experienced, or are at risk of, domestic, family or sexual violence. It helps users tell their story, understand what has happened, know their rights and find people who can help. Including Sunny in internal resource lists is a small but significant step towards more accessible support.
What this can look like in practice
None of this is theoretical. Organisations across Australia are already trying to build safer systems for both victim-survivors and the workers who support them. A few practical principles keep showing up.
Look after the people on the frontline
Frontline roles that support people experiencing violence carry a high emotional load. Helpful practices include trauma-informed recruitment and onboarding, regular supervision and debriefing, clear boundaries around exposure to difficult content and explicit conversations about psychological safety. Any organisation with HR, wellbeing or people-lead roles can adapt these ideas.
Remove guesswork for your own staff
One of the simplest things a workplace can do is remove ambiguity. When domestic and family violence is clearly addressed in employee guidelines and contracts, staff do not have to ask awkwardly what might be available if something happens at home. In one place, they can see their entitlement to paid leave, options for flexible work or adjusted duties and a list of specialist services and national supports.
Think beyond crisis to recovery
Leaving or escaping violence is an important step, but it rarely marks the end of the journey. Recovery from trauma, financial stress, health impacts and the breakdown of support networks can have significant long term effects. Risk can remain, or even escalate, after someone leaves a violent relationship. All of this can be carried into the workplace long after the immediate danger has passed.
When employers integrate trauma-informed psychological support, leadership development and realistic wellbeing strategies into their organisation, it does more than help staff keep their jobs. It helps people slowly rebuild a sense of safety, agency and connection at work.
Embedding practical supports and building leadership capability around domestic and family violence sends a clear message: we take safety seriously, we understand that home and work are connected, and we are prepared to stand alongside you, not look away.
Holiday closures – support when the office is shut
All of this becomes even more critical in December and early January, when family violence risk rises and many workplaces close or run on skeleton staff. There are practical steps employers can take, with and without closures.
Before closing or slowing down
- Send a pre-break communication that:
- Acknowledges that this time of year can be stressful or unsafe for some
- Reminds staff of paid family and domestic violence leave entitlements
- Includes clear details for 1800RESPECT, the Leaving Violence Program and other key supports
- Make sure domestic and family violence policies are easy to find on intranet sites and in handbooks
- Brief people leaders on what to do if someone discloses just before the break and how to document agreed supports
If your organisation closes
- Set out of office messages that quietly include national helplines such as 1800RESPECT and emergency contacts
- Clarify which internal contacts, if any, are available for urgent HR or safety issues during closure, and where their boundaries sit
- Ensure payroll timelines do not accidentally delay pay at a time when people may be budgeting for escape and safety
If your organisation stays open
- Be mindful of rostering and avoid placing someone who is at risk in more isolated roles or shifts without a safety plan
- Make sure managers on duty understand the policy and supports, not only the regular HR team
- Check that employee assistance programmes and internal psychology services remain available and can respond in a trauma-informed way
Being prepared does not guarantee that no one will be harmed. It does increase the odds that someone who needs support will find it.
A call to workplaces beyond the 16 days
Domestic and family violence is not only a private tragedy that happens somewhere else. It is a workplace reality, a psychosocial risk and a leadership challenge.
During this year’s 16 Days of Activism, by all means share the statistics and the orange graphics. Then, quietly ask yourself:
- If someone in my team told me, “I do not feel safe at home”, would I know what to do next
- Do our policies make support clear and accessible, or would they have to hunt for help while in crisis
- Do our leaders understand the supports that exist, from 1800RESPECT to the Leaving Violence Program and tools like Sunny
You do not have to have all the answers. You do have a responsibility not to leave people alone with the question.
A safer future for women and gender diverse people will come from big policy shifts and national plans. It will also come from thousands of quiet conversations in offices, break rooms and video calls, where someone finally says, “I do not feel safe at home” and discovers that work is one place they will be believed and supported.
If this piece has brought anything up for you:
- If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call 000.
- For confidential counselling, information and support, contact 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, text 0458 737 732 or visit the 1800RESPECT website.
For information about the Leaving Violence Program, including eligibility and how to access up to $5,000 in support, visit leavingviolenceprogram.org.au or call 1800 2 LEAVE (1800 253 283).