Magic circle player will also provide financial support and additional paid leave
Linklaters has introduced a new policy and package of support measures for staff living with domestic abuse, in what is believed to be a first for the legal industry.
The new scheme will provide three nights of emergency hotel accommodation, a daily living expenses allowance, ten days paid leave, and a one-off payment of up to £5,000 to support an individual in becoming financially and physically independent from their abuser. There will be no requirement to repay the firm.
The programme comes in response to the reported spike in cases of domestic abuse across the UK during lockdown.
Staff will have access to advice from Surviving Economic Abuse, a UK charity dedicated to raising awareness of economic abuse and transforming responses to it.
David Martin, global diversity and inclusion partner at Linklaters, said:
“The future of how and where we work remains uncertain. For now, our homes are now our workplaces and it is clearer than ever that domestic abuse is a workplace issue. The true scale of domestic abuse is unknown, but we know that there are no shields — it is something that impacts people of all ages, income brackets, education levels and backgrounds.”
The magic circle player has also teamed up with experts from SafeLives, a charity dedicated to ending domestic abuse, to provide training for its HR team on how to spot the signs of domestic abuse.
Martin continued: “We have introduced this comprehensive package of support because we want to send a clear message to any of our people living with abuse that they are not alone, we care, and the help they need is available to them.”
