I

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 851

To amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to allow leave to

address domestic violence and its effects, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 26, 1997

Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD (for herself, Mr. TORRES, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. FROST,

Mr. GUTIERREZ, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Ms. LOFGREN, Ms. NORTON, Mrs.

MALONEY of New York, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. JACKSON of

Illinois, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, and Mr. BALDACCI) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways

and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Education and the

Workforce, Government Reform and Oversight, and House Oversight, for

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to

allow leave to address domestic violence and its effects,

and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND REFERENCE.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Battered Women’s Employment Protection Act ’’.
2

•HR 851 IH

1 (b) REFERENCE.—Whenever in this Act an amend2 ment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment

3 to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference

4 shall be considered to be made to a section or other provi5 sion of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

8 (1) violence against women is the leading cause

9 of physical injury to women, and the Department of

10 Justice estimates that intimate partners commit

11 more than one million violent crimes against women

12 every year;

13 (2) approximately 95 percent of the victims of

14 domestic violence are women;

15 (3) in the United States, a woman is more like16 ly to be assaulted, injured, raped, or killed by a male

17 partner than by any other type of assailant;

18 (4) the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that

19 women will account for two-thirds of all new en20 trants into the work force between now and the year

21 2000;

22 (5) violence against women dramatically affects

23 women’s work force participation, insofar as one24 quarter of battered women surveyed had lost a job
3

•HR 851 IH

1 due at least in part to the effects of domestic vio2 lence, and over half had been harassed by their

3 abuser at work;

4 (6) a study by Domestic Violence Intervention

5 Services, Inc. found that 96 percent of employed do6 mestic violence victims had some type of problem in

7 the workplace as a direct result of their abuse or

8 abuser;

9 (7) the availability of economic support is a

10 critical factor in women’s ability to leave abusive sit11 uations that threaten them and their children, and

12 over half of battered women surveyed stayed with

13 their batterers because they lacked resources to sup14 port themselves and their children;

15 (8) a report by the New York City Victims

16 Services Agency found that abusive spouses and

17 lovers harass 74 percent of battered women at work,

18 54 percent of battering victims miss at least 3 days

19 of work per month, 56 percent are late for work at

20 least 5 times per month, and a University of Min21 nesota study found that 24 percent of women in

22 support groups for battered women had lost a job

23 partly because of being abused;

24 (9) a survey of State unemployment insurance

25 agency directors by the Federal Advisory Council on
4

•HR 851 IH

1 Unemployment Compensation found that in 31

2 States battered women who leave work as a result

3 of domestic violence do not qualify for unemploy4 ment benefits, in 9 States the determination often

5 varies depending on the facts and circumstances,

6 and in only 13 States are they usually considered

7 qualified for unemployment benefits;

8 (10) a study by the New York State Depart9 ment of Labor found that, when filing for unemploy10 ment insurance benefits, domestic violence victims

11 frequently hide their victimization and do not dis12 close the domestic violence as a reason for their

13 problems with the job or need to separate from em14 ployment;

15 (11) 49 percent of senior executives recently

16 surveyed said domestic violence has a harmful effect

17 on their company’s productivity, 47 percent said do18 mestic violence negatively affects attendance, and 44

19 percent said domestic violence increases health care

20 costs, and the Bureau of National Affairs estimates

21 that domestic violence costs employers between 3

22 and 5 billion dollars per year; and

23 (12) existing Federal and State legislation does

24 not expressly authorize battered women to take leave

25 from work to seek legal assistance and redress,
5

•HR 851 IH

1 counseling, or assistance with safety planning and

2 activities.

3 (b) PURPOSES.—Pursuant to the affirmative power

4 of Congress to enact this Act under section 5 of the Four5 teenth Amendment to the Constitution, as well as under

6 clause 1 of section 8 of Article I of the Constitution and

7 clause 3 of section 8 of Article I of the Constitution, the

8 purposes of this Act are—

9 (1) to promote the national interest in reducing

10 domestic violence by enabling victims of domestic vi11 olence to maintain the financial independence nec12 essary to leave abusive situations, to achieve safety

13 and minimize the physical and emotional injuries

14 from domestic violence, and to reduce the devastat15 ing economic consequences of domestic violence to

16 employers and employees, by—

17 (A) providing unemployment insurance for

18 victims of domestic violence who are forced to

19 leave their employment as a result of domestic

20 violence; and

21 (B) entitling employed victims of domestic

22 violence to take reasonable leave under the

23 Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to seek

24 medical help, legal assistance, counseling, and
6

•HR 851 IH

1 safety planning and assistance without penalty

2 from their employer;

3 (2) to promote the purposes of the Fourteenth

4 Amendment by protecting the civil and economic

5 rights of victims of domestic violence and by further6 ing the equal opportunity of women to employment

7 and economic self-sufficiency;

8 (3) to minimize the negative impact on inter9 state commerce from dislocations of employees and

10 harmful effects on productivity, health care costs,

11 and employer costs from domestic violence; and

12 (4) to accomplish the purposes described in

13 paragraphs (1) , (2) and (3) in a manner that ac14 commodates the legitimate interests of employers.

15 SEC. 3. UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.

16 (a) UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.—Section

17 3304(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amend18 ed—

19 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

20 (18),

21 (2) by striking the period at the end of para22 graph (19) and inserting ‘‘; and’’,

23 (3) by adding after paragraph (19) the follow24 ing:
7

•HR 851 IH

1 ‘‘(20) compensation is to be provided where an

2 individual is separated from employment due to cir3 cumstances directly resulting from the individual’s

4 experience of domestic violence.’’,

5 (4) by redesignating subsections (b) through (f)

6 as subsections (c) through (g), respectively, and

7 (5) by adding after subsection (a) the following:

8 ‘‘(b) CONSTRUCTION.—

9 ‘‘(1) For the purpose of determining, under

10 subsection (a)(20), whether an employee’s separation

11 from employment is ‘directly resulting’ from the in12 dividual’s experience of domestic violence, it shall be

13 sufficient if the separation from employment re14 sulted from—

15 ‘‘(A) the employee’s reasonable fear of fu16 ture domestic violence at or en route to or from

17 her place of employment;

18 ‘‘(B) the employee’s wish to relocate to an19 other geographic area in order to avoid future

20 domestic violence against the employee or the

21 employee’s family;

22 ‘‘(C) the employee’s need to recover from

23 traumatic stress resulting from the employee’s

24 experience of domestic violence;
8

•HR 851 IH

1 ‘‘(D) the employer’s denial of the employ2 ee’s request for the temporary leave from em3 ployment to address domestic violence and its

4 effects authorized by section 102 of the Family

5 and Medical Leave Act of 1993; or

6 ‘‘(E) any other respect in which domestic

7 violence causes the employee to reasonably be8 lieve that termination of employment is nec9 essary for the future safety of the employee or

10 the employee’s family.

11 ‘‘(2) For purposes of subsection (a)(20), where

12 State law requires the employee to have made rea13 sonable efforts to retain employment as a condition

14 for receiving unemployment compensation, it shall be

15 sufficient that the employee—

16 ‘‘(A) sought protection from or assistance

17 in responding to domestic violence, including

18 calling the police or seeking legal, social work,

19 medical, clergy, or other assistance;

20 ‘‘(B) sought safety, including refuge in a

21 shelter or temporary or permanent relocation,

22 whether or not the employee actually obtained

23 such refuge or accomplished such relocation; or
9

•HR 851 IH

1 ‘‘(C) reasonably believed that options such

2 as a leave, transfer, or alternative work sched3 ule would not be sufficient to guarantee the em4 ployee or the employee’s family’s safety.

5 ‘‘(3) For purposes of subsection (a)(20), where

6 State law requires the employee to actively search

7 for employment after separation from employment

8 as a condition for receiving unemployment com9 pensation, such requirement shall be deemed to be

10 met where the employee is temporarily unable to ac11 tively search for employment because the employee is

12 engaged in seeking safety or relief for the employee

13 or the employee’s family from domestic violence, in14 cluding—

15 ‘‘(A) going into hiding or relocating or at16 tempting to do so, including activities associ17 ated with such relocation or hiding, such as

18 seeking to obtain sufficient shelter, food, school19 ing for children, or other necessities of life for

20 the employee or the employee’s family;

21 ‘‘(B) actively pursuing legal protection or

22 remedies, including meeting with the police,

23 going to court to make inquiries or file papers,

24 meeting with attorneys, or attending court pro25 ceedings; or
10

•HR 851 IH

1 ‘‘(C) participating in psychological, social,

2 or religious counseling or support activities to

3 assist the employee in ending domestic violence.

4 ‘‘(4) In determining if an employee meets the

5 requirements of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), the

6 employer of an employee may require the employee

7 to provide—

8 ‘‘(A) documentation of the domestic vio9 lence, such as police or court records, or docu10 mentation of the domestic violence from a shel11 ter worker, attorney, clergy, or medical or other

12 professional from whom the employee has

13 sought assistance in addressing domestic vio14 lence and its effects; or

15 ‘‘(B) other corroborating evidence, such as

16 a statement from any other individual with

17 knowledge of the circumstances which provide

18 the basis for the claim, or physical evidence of

19 domestic violence, such as photographs, torn or

20 bloody clothes, etc.’’.

21 All evidence of domestic violence experienced by an

22 employee, including an employee’s statement, any

23 corroborating evidence, and the fact that an em24 ployee has applied for or inquired about unemploy25 ment compensation available under section
11

•HR 851 IH

1 3304(a)(20) shall be retained in the strictest con2 fidence of the employer, except to the extent con3 sented to by the employee where disclosure is nec4 essary to protect the employee’s safety.’’.

5 (b) SOCIAL SECURITY PERSONNEL TRAINING.—Sec6 tion 303(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.

7 503(a)(4)) is amended by redesignating paragraphs (4)

8 through (10) as paragraphs (5) through (11), respectively,

9 and by adding after paragraph (3) the following:

10 ‘‘(4) Such methods of administration as will en11 sure that claims reviewers and hearing personnel are

12 adequately trained in the nature and dynamics of

13 domestic violence and in methods of ascertaining

14 and keeping confidential information about possible

15 experiences of domestic violence, so that employment

16 separations stemming from domestic violence are re17 liably screened, identified, and adjudicated and full

18 confidentiality is provided for the employee’s claim

19 and submitted evidence.’’.

20 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3306 of the Internal Rev21 enue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the

22 following:

23 ‘‘(u) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—The term ‘domestic vio24 lence’ includes abuse committed against an employee or

25 a family member of the employee by—
12

•HR 851 IH

1 ‘‘(1) a current or former spouse of the em2 ployee;

3 ‘‘(2) a person with whom the employee shares

4 a child in common;

5 ‘‘(3) a person who is cohabitating with or has

6 cohabitated with the employee as a romantic or inti7 mate partner; or

8 ‘‘(4) a person from whom the employee would

9 be eligible for protection under the domestic vio10 lence, protection order, or family laws of the juris11 diction in which the employee resides or the em12 ployer is located.

13 ‘‘(v) ABUSE.—The term ‘abuse’ includes—

14 ‘‘(1) physical acts resulting in, or threatening to

15 result in, physical injury;

16 ‘‘(2) sexual abuse, sexual activity involving a

17 dependent child, or threats of or attempts at sexual

18 abuse;

19 ‘‘(3) mental abuse, including threats, intimida20 tion, acts designed to induce terror, or restraints on

21 liberty; and

22 ‘‘(4) deprivation of medical care, housing, food

23 or other necessities of life.’’.
13

•HR 851 IH

1 SEC. 4. ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE FOR DOMESTIC VIO2 LENCE.

3 (a) AUTHORITY FOR LEAVE.—Section 102(a)(1) (29

4 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the

5 following:

6 ‘‘(E) In order to care for the child or par7 ent of the employee, if such child or parent is

8 addressing domestic violence and its effects.

9 ‘‘(F) Because the employee is addressing

10 domestic violence and its effects, the employee

11 is unable to perform any of the functions of the

12 position of such employee.’’.

13 (b) DEFINITION.—Section 101 (29 U.S.C. 2611) is

14 amended by adding at the end the following:

15 ‘‘(14) ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND

16 ITS EFFECTS.—The term ‘addressing domestic vio17 lence and its effects’ means—

18 ‘‘(A) experiencing domestic violence,

19 ‘‘(B) seeking medical attention for or re20 covering from injuries caused by domestic vio21 lence,

22 ‘‘(C) seeking legal assistance or remedies,

23 including communicating with the police or an

24 attorney, or participating in any legal proceed25 ing related to domestic violence,
14

•HR 851 IH

1 ‘‘(D) attending support groups for victims

2 of domestic violence,

3 ‘‘(E) obtaining psychological counseling re4 lated to experiences of domestic violence,

5 ‘‘(F) participating in safety planning and

6 other actions to increase safety from future do7 mestic violence, including temporary or perma8 nent relocation and

9 ‘‘(G) any other activity necessitated by do10 mestic violence which must be undertaken dur11 ing hours of employment.’’.

12 (c) INTERMITTENT OR REDUCED LEAVE.—Section

13 102(b) (29 U.S.C. 2612(b)) is amended by adding at the

14 end the following:

15 ‘‘(3) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—Leave under sub16 paragraph (E) or (F) of subsection (a)(1) may be

17 taken by an employee intermittently or on a reduced

18 leave schedule. The taking of leave intermittently or

19 on a reduced leave schedule pursuant to this para20 graph shall not result in a reduction in the total

21 amount of leave to which the employee is entitled

22 under subsection (a) beyond the amount of leave ac23 tually taken.’’.
15

•HR 851 IH

1 (d) PAID LEAVE.—Section 102(d)(2) (29 U.S.C.

2 2612(d)) is amended by striking ‘‘(C) or (D)’’ and insert3 ing ‘‘(C), (D), (E), or (F)’’.

4 (e) CERTIFICATION.—Section 103 (29 U.S.C. 2613)

5 is amended by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection

6 (f) and by inserting after subsection (d) the following:

7 ‘‘(e) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—In determining if an

8 employee meets the requirements of subparagraph (E) or

9 (F) of section 102(a)(1), the employer of an employee may

10 require the employee to provide—

11 ‘‘(1) documentation of the domestic violence,

12 such as police or court records, or documentation of

13 the domestic violence from a shelter worker, attor14 ney, clergy, or medical or other professional from

15 whom the employee has sought assistance in ad16 dressing domestic violence and its effects; or

17 ‘‘(2) other corroborating evidence, such as a

18 statement from any other individual with knowledge

19 of the circumstances which provide the basis for the

20 claim, or physical evidence of domestic violence, such

21 as photographs, torn or bloody clothes, etc.’’.

22 (f) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Section 103 (29 U.S.C.

23 2613), as amended by subsection (e), is amended—

24 (1) in the title by adding before the period the

25 following: ‘‘; CONFIDENTIALITY’’, and
16

•HR 851 IH

1 (2) by adding at the end the following:

2 ‘‘(g) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All evidence of domestic vi3 olence experienced by an employee or the employee’s child

4 or parent, including an employee’s statement, any corrobo5 rating evidence, and the fact that an employee has re6 quested leave for the purpose of addressing domestic vio7 lence and its effects, shall be retained in the strictest con8 fidence by the employer, except to the extent consented

9 to by the employee where disclosure is necessary to protect

10 the employee’s safety.’’.

11 SEC. 5. ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE FOR FEDERAL EMPLOY12 EES FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.

13 (a) AUTHORITY FOR LEAVE.—Section 6382 of title

14 5, United States Code is amended by adding at the end

15 the following:

16 ‘‘(E) In order to care for the child or parent of

17 the employee, if such child or parent is addressing

18 domestic violence and its effects.

19 ‘‘(F) Because the employee is addressing do20 mestic violence and its effects, the employee is un21 able to perform any of the functions of the position

22 of such employee.’’.

23 (b) DEFINITION.—Section 6381 of title 5, United

24 States Code is amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of
17

•HR 851 IH

1 paragraph (5), by striking the period at the end of para2 graph (6) and inserting ‘‘; and’’ and by adding at the end

3 the following:

4 ‘‘(7) the term ‘addressing domestic violence and

5 its effects’ means—

6 ‘‘(A) experiencing domestic violence,

7 ‘‘(B) seeking medical attention for or re8 covering from injuries caused by domestic vio9 lence,

10 ‘‘(C) seeking legal assistance or remedies,

11 including communicating with the police or an

12 attorney, or participating in any legal proceed13 ing related to domestic violence,

14 ‘‘(D) attending support groups for victims

15 of domestic violence,

16 ‘‘(E) obtaining psychological counseling re17 lated to experiences of domestic violence,

18 ‘‘(F) participating in safety planning and

19 other actions to increase safety from future do20 mestic violence, including temporary or perma21 nent relocation and

22 ‘‘(G) any other activity necessitated by do23 mestic violence which must be undertaken dur24 ing hours of employment.’’.
18

•HR 851 IH

1 (c) INTERMITTENT OR REDUCED LEAVE.—Section

2 6382(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by add3 ing at the end the following:

4 ‘‘(3) Leave under subparagraph (E) or (F) of

5 subsection (a)(1) may be taken by an employee

6 intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule. The

7 taking of leave intermittently or on a reduced leave

8 schedule pursuant to this paragraph shall not result

9 in a reduction in the total amount of leave to which

10 the employee is entitled under subsection (a) beyond

11 the amount of leave actually taken.’’.

12 (d) OTHER LEAVE.—Section 6382(d) of title 5, Unit13 ed States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘(C) or (D)’’ and

14 inserting ‘‘(C), (D), (E), or (F)’’.

15 (e) CERTIFICATION.—Section 6383 of title 5, United

16 States Code, is amended by redesignating subsection (e)

17 as subsection (f) and by inserting after subsection (d) the

18 following:

19 ‘‘(e) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—In determining if an

20 employee meets the requirements of subparagraph (E) or

21 (F) of section 6382(a)(1), the employer of an employee

22 may require the employee to provide—

23 ‘‘(1) documentation of the domestic violence,

24 such as police or court records, or documentation of
19

•HR 851 IH

1 the domestic violence from a shelter worker, attor2 ney, clergy, or medical or other professional from

3 whom the employee has sought assistance in ad4 dressing domestic violence and its effects; or

5 ‘‘(2) other corroborating evidence, such as a

6 statement from any other individual with knowledge

7 of the circumstances which provide the basis for the

8 claim, or physical evidence of domestic violence, such

9 as photographs, torn or bloody clothes, etc.’’.

10 (f) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Section 6383 of title 5,

11 United States Code, as amended by subsection (e), is

12 amended—

13 (1) in the title by adding before the period the

14 following: ‘‘; Confidentiality’’, and

15 (2) by adding at the end the following:

16 ‘‘(g) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All evidence of domestic vi17 olence experienced by an employee or the employee’s child

18 or parent, including an employee’s statement, any corrobo19 rating evidence, and the fact that an employee has re20 quested leave for the purpose of addressing domestic vio21 lence and its effects, shall be retained in the strictest con22 fidence by the employer, except to the extent consented

23 to by the employee where disclosure is necessary to protect

24 the employee’s safety.’’.
20

•HR 851 IH

1 SEC. 6. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS AND EMPLOYMENT BENE2 FITS.

3 (1) MORE PROTECTIVE.—Nothing in this Act

4 or the amendments made by this Act shall be con5 strued to supersede any provision of any Federal,

6 State or local law, collective bargaining agreement,

7 or other employment benefit program which provides

8 greater unemployment compensation or leave bene9 fits for employed victims of domestic violence than

10 the rights established under this Act or such amend11 ments.

12 (2) LESS PROTECTIVE.—The rights established

13 for employees under this Act or the amendments

14 made by this Act shall not be diminished by any col15 lective bargaining agreement, any employment bene16 fit program or plan, or any State or local law.

17 SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.

18 (a) GENERAL RULE.—Except as provided in sub19 section (b), this Act and the amendments made by this

20 Act shall take effect upon the expiration of 180 days from

21 the date of the enactment of this Act.

22 (b) UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para24 graph (2), the amendments made by section 3 shall
21

•HR 851 IH

1 apply in the case of compensation paid for weeks be2 ginning on or after the expiration of 180 days from

3 the date of the enactment of this Act.

4 (2) MEETING OF STATE LEGISLATURE.—In the

5 case of a State with respect to which the Secretary

6 of Labor has determined that the State legislature

7 is required in order to comply with the amendments

8 made by section 3, the amendments made by section

9 3 shall apply in the case of compensation paid for

10 weeks which begin on or after the expiration of 180

11 days from the date of the enactment of this Act and

12 after the end of the first session of the Sate legisla13 ture which begins after the date of the enactment of

14 this Act or which began prior to the date of the en15 actment of this Act and remained in session for at

16 least 25 calendar days after such date of enactment.

17 For purposes of the preceding sentence, the term

18 ‘‘session’’ means a regular, special, budget, or other

19 session of a State legislature.

Æ