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| October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month |
(IRN)-Friday begins Domestic Violence Awareness Month, with a reminder that this is a serious problem without simple solutions.
The Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence studied the problem precisely in our state, over the last half of last year through the first half of this year: 79 people were killed in 56 fatal incidents of domestic violence in Illinois. 94 percent of the offenders were men; 70 percent of the victims were female.
The coalition is also publishing a report on what 900 domestic violence survivors say they need: A safe place to live, both for a transition out of an abusive relationship and long term, affordable child care, and a criminal and civil justice system that holds abusers accountable.
Vicki Smith, director of the coalition, says in general, Illinois has good laws against domestic violence.
Also today, The Illinois Department of Labor issued a reminder about the Victims' Economic Security and Safety Act, which protects the jobs of domestic violence victims who need unpaid time off for medical care or court appearances.
"It's very important that workers [who] are victims of domestic violence don't lose their job at the very time that they need to have financial independence in order to escape the harm that they are suffering in abusive situations," Department of Labor Director Catherine M. Shannon said.
The law, enacted in 2003, provides up to 15 weeks of unpaid leave for workers in workplaces with 50 or more employees, and up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in workplaces with 15 or more employees.
(Illinois Radio Network) |
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| 10 01 10 by Newsroom |
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