Partnered with a Survivor: David Mandel and Ruth Reymundo Mandel

Season 2 Episode 21: Minisode Series on Worker Safety & Well-Being: When Workers Are Targeted by the Perpetrator

Season 2 Episode 21

In this second installment of the multi-part minisode series on worker safety and well-being, Ruth and David explore the important topic of workers being targeted by domestic violence perpetrators. In less than 15 minutes , David and Ruth discuss different ways workers are targeted, including:

  • Manipulation, intimidation, and bullying 
  • Threats of or actual lawsuits and complaints lodged with managers, professional boards, or courts 
  • Implied or real threats against family members 
  • Stalking (online or in real life)

Ruth and David also discuss how misogyny, racism, or other forms of discrimination can be factors in the targeting of workers. 

David and Ruth finish the brief episode with specific suggestions about basic safety and support strategies that agencies can put in place to respond to the behaviors of perpetrators, including: 

  • Explicitly widen out the concept of worker safety to include intimidation and manipulation, not just explicit threats or acts of  violence.
  • Make this wider definition of worker safety a regular part of preventative (not reactive) supervision.
  • Ensure that staff that handle client complaint or review boards are educated around coercive control and pattern-based assessments.
  • Performance reviews and human resources procedures need to be consider the impact of threats and intimidation on a worker’s performance.

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