MOCADSV Supports Survivors Through White Paper Opposing HCS #2
Post Date: March 27, 2025
Bringing employers to Missouri has long been a priority for many. This also means a dual focus on the employees, and Proposition A was a mandate from almost 58 percent of voters that employees want more. On behalf of survivors of domestic and sexual violence, we are in opposition to HCS #2, which includes HB567, 546,758, and 958.
People get sick. No one likes coming to work and sitting in a workspace next to a sick person, knowing they are likely contagious and will end up sick themselves and will come to pass illnesses to their home and family. The sick person isn’t coming to work to be malicious – more often than not, they come because they can’t afford not to come to work when their employer does not have a sick leave policy in place.
The sick leave provision in Proposition A is an exceptional piece of legislation in the way it also allows victims to participate in the justice system without fear of loss of income or employment. In other states, this is referred to as ‘sick and safe leave.’
According to the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center (MERIC) of the Missouri Department of Economic Development, in 2022, women comprised just over half of Missouri’s workforce, and that number “has remained steady over the last decade.” [i] Women of all ages are more likely to work part-time jobs compared to men, according to the same report. Removing sick leave will have a direct impact on women working to support families.
At the same time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that one in four women and one in seven men will experience physical violence by their intimate partner at some point in their lifetime. Additionally, one in three women and one in six men will experience some form of sexual assault in their lifetime. Victims and survivors of violence are those we work with and employ.[ii]
There is an expectation in this state that crime victims, including domestic and sexual violence victims, will participate in the criminal legal process. While there may be some exceptions, it is inconsistently applied and/or understood. Throughout the legal system, a “cooperating witness” is one who we expect to attend court hearings and court-related preparatory meetings. Under existing law (595.209.14), which many employers are likely unaware, we afford survivors protection from losing a job if they are subpoenaed or are otherwise participating in a court case. Through the Victims Economic Security Act (VESSA), domestic and sexual violence victims are protected from losing a job to seek assistance. For both, we still expect them to leave work without pay, a luxury many cannot afford.
Study after study has shown that domestic violence results in poor health outcomes.[v] The physical aftermath of an assault may include blows to the head resulting in head trauma, strangulation, rape, or other types of injuries a victim may be suffering when they come to work. This means employees come to work experiencing dizziness, stomach pain, bleeding, and other symptoms that they may be forced to ignore for the sake of keeping their job rather than tending to their injuries. Employers clearly want productive employees. Without paid sick leave the choice is no pay or requiring someone to come to work rather than caring for their bruised, concussed, and bleeding bodies or that of their children. This only addresses the physical harm. There is still emotional and mental harm that can be mitigated with counseling and intervention, if workers are afforded paid time off and the surety that they won’t lose their job by caring for themselves and their families.
Economic security is a key factor in preventing intimate partner violence. Violence prevention is enhanced when efforts to strengthen the economic security of individuals in violent relationships is stabilized. Their ability to secure housing, feed themselves and their children, and access childcare increases their ability to seek safety and receive support as they determine their next steps. “Providing paid safe [sick] leave ensures survivors can not only remain in their jobs but also maintain financial autonomy and security to leave their abusive partners and keep their families safe.”[iv]
Victims need to seek life-saving services such as medical appointments and court appearances during regular office hours. They are required to choose between their income, which is their lifeline to safety and security, or seeking a systems response that they may not have had experience with, or may have not been helpful to them before.
Economic coercion is a tactic used by abusive partners. Survivors may hear, “turn in your receipts and the change from your trip to the grocery store;” “give me your paycheck;” or “I will be in charge of all our financial assets.” While survivors are experiencing this type of economic coercion, we are asking them to risk a lesser paycheck or potential job loss for an absence to seek a protection order – thus signaling to their abusive partner that they have missed work by bringing home a smaller check or no paycheck at all. This signal can lead to another violent incident and increased surveillance, stalking, and controlling actions.
We understand that asking employers of all sizes to change their practices to expand and include sick leave may be a challenge. Our own membership includes employers of all sizes. Staffing can be an issue, and we acknowledge that. We’ve heard the argument that recordkeeping is an issue. As nonprofits we understand and experience our own burdens with recordkeeping, so we know that implementing a new system or spreadsheet, while inconvenient, isn’t impossible.
Tossing out the sick leave law isn’t the answer when the result for victims of violence, or for folks who just get sick, risk of losing their job and falling into medical debt, or facing ongoing violence, and for both – poverty.
In closing, the new statute affords seven days a year of sick leave for employers with more than 15 employees or five days a year for those with less than 15. The state doesn’t require family leave, vacation, or holiday for private employers. Five or seven days a year. The statute does allow for carry-over balances, but the law itself doesn’t mandate the use of the carryover hours. It only mandates those five or seven days. It is by the employer’s own policy that they would allow an employee to use more.
We want employers to come to Missouri. We want a robust, healthy, and safe workforce. We want businesses to thrive. We also want victims of domestic and sexual violence to be able to seek safety for themselves and their children. Five, or seven days, 40 or 56 hours a year, isn’t too much to ask. If concerned about how and when someone can take sick leave, and whom they can care for beyond themselves, then modify the law – don’t strip these crucial provisions that can help so many.
