Businesses asked to help prevent domestic violence

Eric Feigenbaum

Wednesday, June 16, 1999 | 11:11 a.m.

State and local government officials and private groups are urging Nevada businesses to help combat domestic violence.

Officials announced a program Tuesday in which employers will be provided with brochures, posters and other resources they can offer employees or use themselves.

The material includes information on how victims can help themselves and how co-workers can identify and help victims.

Nevada employers will also be asked to train managers and employees about domestic violence, improve security, provide counseling or referrals to victims, connect with community-wide programs fighting domestic violence and develop policies on domestic violence.

Some of the material to be distributed to companies was authored by victim advocacy groups including the Nevada Network Against Domestic Violence and the Nevada Commission for Women.

Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa, a leader in the effort, said Nevada has some 15 organizations that help domestic violence victims and that can be used as resources by companies.

"I urge employers to become as familiar as they can with these agencies and to take as proactive a stance as possible on domestic violence in the workplace," Del Papa said.

Del Papa said one in four American women say they have experienced domestic violence at the hands of a boyfriend or spouse.

"Domestic violence results in hundreds of millions of dollars in health care costs in the United States, much of which is paid for by employer benefits," Del Papa said. "It is estimated that American employees miss 175,000 days of paid work due to domestic violence.

"Domestic violence in our state and our country is a public health epidemic," she said. "I'm not kidding when I say that when you talk to management personnel, they ask for more resources."

Roseann Sirody, board member of the local Safe Nest shelter for battered women and children, praised the initiative. She said employers can make a difference by simply publicizing the phone numbers of hotlines for victims of domestic violence.

"Sometimes it's really, really hard," she said. "You don't know where to go, you don't know where to call. There are choices -- you don't have to live with that idiot."

The packet of information Del Papa and Employers Insurance is sending to employers includes an order form for 11 types of posters, in both English and Spanish, that employers can place in break rooms or offices.

Sirody also said group training on domestic violence and how to spot a victim can go a long way. Encouragement and support from others can really help a victim, she said.

Del Papa was joined in announcing the initiative Tuesday by officials of Employers Insurance Company of Nevada, a workers' compensation insurance company; the Hotel San Remo, the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce; the Las Vegas city attorney's office and Business Watch Network (BWN). BWN is a private business group working to reduce crime in Las Vegas and to help companies with crime issues.

Douglas Dirks, chief executive of Employers Insurance Company of Nevada, called domestic violence a growing problem in Nevada and said every employer in the state should step up to fight it.

"Domestic violence affects management policies in safety planning, hiring, benefits, discipline and confidentiality, as well as productivity and welfare of employees," Dirks said.

The officials challenged all Nevada employers to take action on domestic violence by Oct. 1.