CUPE NB is giving a thumbs up to proposed regulations allowing people experiencing domestic, intimate partner, or sexual violence to take workplace leave.
The changes would provide up to 10 days of leave to be used all at once or intermittently, and up to 16 weeks of continuous time off, with five days being paid.
President Daniel Légère tells us this has been one of their priorities for many years.
“It helps women, mostly women, who find themselves in these terrible positions to seek the assistance and the help and to find a secure, safe environment for themselves and possibly their children as well,” says Légère.
He says CUPE recommended 10 days of paid leave, followed by 17 weeks of unpaid leave, but says the government’s proposal is a “brave first step” in the right direction.
Légère would like to see a requirement to maintain the confidentiality of those taking leave and he says the employers’ right to request proof should be limited.
“Far too often, we see these type of situations end in tragedy in the workplaces,” he says.
“The perpetrator of violence sometimes follows the partner into the workplace and will talk to co-workers, asking what’s going on.”
You can review the proposed regulations until July 13 by clicking here.
