March 28, 2024

WorkSafeBC unveils toolkit for domestic violence

When Allen Sawkins wished his partner Tony McNaughton a good day at work one January morning in 2000, domestic violence was the last thing on his mind.

Yet, as Sawkins found out after McNaughton was stabbed to death that day at the Starbucks he managed, domestic violence can reach far beyond the home.

McNaughton was killed when he tried to stop an abusive ex-husband who had come to attack another Starbucks employee.

WorkSafeBC released a new toolkit to employers Thursday, aimed at educating them about domestic violence and about how the effects of such abuse can bleed into the workplace.

“We need to help employers start what is a very difficult, very sensitive conversation to have,” said WorkSafeBC senior vice-president Roberta Ellis.

The toolkit, which includes text and educational videos, will be distributed to employers around the province.

It provides employers with strategies to design a culture that encourages victims to ask for help, and tells employers what to do when violence comes to the workplace itself, as it did for McNaughton.

The toolkit was developed in response to a Coroners Service report that called for the Minister of Labour to educate employers about how to deal with such a complex issue.

“If by this we can raise the issue of domestic violence, and violence generally, and do something to counter it,” said Sawkins, “then that’s part of Tony’s legacy.”

Local news from metronews.ca/vancouver

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