At Kia Puāwai we want to ensure that all our kaimahi work in a safe and supportive environment, and this includes knowing where to turn for help if they are experiencing domestic or family violence – even if that was prior to working for our organisation. Domestic violence can happen in any home, in any part of the motu, and we want to make it clear that the rates of family violence in Aotearoa are not acceptable.
With this in mind, on Thursday last week we were extremely proud to host Marg Fitzgibbon and Parisa Kooshesh from Shine for the presentation of our DVFREE Tick award. The process to gain this tick has been an involved one, and it was a huge honour to receive our official certification from the team at Shine, Aotearoa’s specialist domestic violence prevention charity.
The DVFREE Tick is a workplace partnership programme designed to help organisations provide a sustainable, best practice response to family violence that goes above and beyond any legal obligations. We’re happy to join other organisations such as Te Whatu Ora, Toi Hau Tāngata, and the Human Rights Commission in being a DVFREE Tick partner.
We now have a fantastic group of ‘first responder’ kaimahi from across Kia Puāwai who have been trained by Shine and are prepared to support anyone in our teams impacted by family violence.
They can also provide guidance and support for managers with a team member who is experiencing family violence, or access flexible working arrangements and domestic/family violence leave.
Our Chief Executive Marion Heeney says, “This topic is an important one to us as we want to ensure that all our kaimahi feel safe at work and are well supported if they are experiencing family violence in their personal life. Through our mahi we regularly work with families where domestic violence can occur, so gaining the DVFREE Tick makes a lot of sense for our organisation.”
As a DVFREE Tick partner, Kia Puāwai is committed to meet our ongoing requirements to sustain a best practice workplace response to domestic violence, which will ensure all our kaimahi feel supported and know how to access help if needed.