Victims of domestic abuse will no longer have to put themselves at risk by searching online for resources to help them.

A new law in the state of Washington requires employers to display a poster that provides information about the National Domestic Violence Hotline and the Washington Domestic Violence Coalition.

The poster also includes a blank space for employers to provide information about local resources.

There is no penalty for failing to display the poster, but Employment Security Commissioner Suzi LeVine thinks most businesses will comply because domestic violence also affects workplace productivity.

"We all need to work together to make sure that survivors of domestic violence are able to find the help thy need so that they can escape the dangerous and potentially life-threatening situations they face," LeVine said during a recent press conference introducing the poster.

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14th District State Representative Gina Mosbrucker from Goldendale introduced legislation during the 2019 session to require employers to provide information about domestic violence.

Over the past ten years, 560 men and women in the state died as the result of intimate partner violence.

"In my district, we've had women beaten to death with a baseball bat. We've infants laying next to their mother who was shot by a domestic partner. And we've also had a woman recently burned to death after years of domestic violence," Mosbrucker said.

She said abusers often restrict where a victim can go, who they can communicate with, and whether they can access things like social media and the internet. However, most abusers will allow their victims to go to work.

"They couldn't go to their mother's house. They couldn't go to their friends' house, because then you would see-- somebody could tell. Somebody could see the bruises. So what we've learned is that the one place they get to go is to work-- and it because they want (the victim) to help pay rent."

The posters, which can be downloaded from the Employment Security Department's website, provide phone numbers and website for the National Domestic Violence Hotline and Washington Domestic Violence Coalition.

 

If you or someone you know is involved in an abusive relationship, contact the National Domestic Violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or Domestic Violence Services of Benton & Franklin Counties at 1-800-648-1277.

 

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