Economy Minister today launched a consultation
on the introduction of a new right for victims of domestic abuse
to access paid safe leave from work.
The Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave) Act (NI) 2022 was passed by the
Assembly in March 2022. The Department for the Economy is
required to consult and make regulations to operationalise this
Act.
The Minister said: “This progressive legislation will give
workers who are the victims of domestic abuse up to 10 days paid
leave in each leave year to deal with issues related to domestic
abuse. The purpose of this consultation is to seek views on
the practicalities of how we implement this important new
employment right.
“Once implemented, safe leave will provide an important workplace
support to some of the most vulnerable in our society."
The Minister continued: “I want to take the views of all
stakeholders, including workers, employers, trade unions and
support organisations, so that we develop regulations that
provide support for all users of this important new
legislation. I encourage everyone with an interest in this
important area to respond to the consultation and share their
views.”
The consultation will be open for 12 weeks from 5 July to 27
September 2024.
The consultation is
available on the Department for the Economy website.
Notes to editors:
1. The Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave)
Act NI 2022(external link opens in a new window / tab) is
available at the legislation.gov.uk website.
