Domestic Violence Facts: How to Recognize the Signs of Domestic Violence and Reach Out to Victims and Co-Workers

In the United States, approximately 5.3 million women age 18 or older are domestically abused each year. According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, these women are abused verbally, sexually, and physically by past or previous partners.

Each day, four women in the United States die as a result of domestic violence.

Domestic Violence Facts: According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, domestic violence acts generally fall into the following categories:

Physical Violence: The victim physically suffers at the hand of the attacker, experiencing slapping, pinching, bruising, and in worst cases, murder. It often goes overlooked that domestic violence begins with verbal abuse and progresses to small and infrequent events. This domestic violence will then escalate into physical attacks, rough contact, and serious abuse to the victim. These consequences can be serious for the victim.

Sexual Abuse: In many cases, physical attacks are accompanied by sexual violence, or attacks escalate to sexual violence.

Psychological Abuse: Psychological or mental abuse, such as possessive behavior, the destruction of personal property, verbal abuse, harassment, and deprivation of money are other forms of domestic abuse. Although no physical damage is caused, these are not to be taken lightly.

Domestic Violence Fact: Domestic Violence Follows Women to the Workplace

Although domestic violence isn’t conceived as a work-related problem, it is.Abuse, threatening behavior, and acts of violence do go beyond women’s home environment and show up at work.

Domestic Violence Fact: According to the Family Violence Prevention Fund study, 74% of US women who suffer abuse at home also experience abuse at their place of work.

Domestic Violence perpetrators contact the victim via phone, email, and by other resources, checking on and pressuring their victims.Sometimes this abuse may extend to co-workers as well.

Domestic Violence Fact: Approximately 20,000 workers are threatened or attacked in their workplace yearly, usually by a partner or spouse.

Domestic violence also affects an individual’s ability to keep a job. The following are warning signs of domestic abuse:

Has a co-worker become withdrawn socially?

Is he or she showing signs or evidence of assault or bruising?

Does he or she cry or become agitated when talking on the phone?

Does your co-worker receive frequent personal calls?

Is his or her job suffering?

If a victim confides in you, believe them and encourage them to talk about the situation. Avoid pressuring your friend or co-worker, respect confidentiality, and do not judge—inform them they are not alone and are not to blame.

Learn the domestic violence facts and become empowered. You have the ability to change how domestic violence affects females in the workplace. Raise awareness for this concern.

Erica Ronchetti is a freelance writer for Soroptimist International of the Americas, an Women organization working to improve the lives of women and girls in local communities and throughout the world.Learn more about sex trafficking , domestic violence facts, sex slavery and how you can raise domestic violence awareness at Soroptimist.com.

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