What did the Democrats in the Senate just do that Republicans did not when they were in power? Hold a hearing on domestic violence:
WASHINGTON — Yvette Cade was set on fire by her estranged husband at her job. She suffered third-degree burns over 60 percent her body, and her bottom lip melted into her chin.
Yet Cade said she is lucky. The Maryland resident survived to tell her story, while many other victims of domestic violence – including a University of Washington staffer and an Atlanta hotel worker killed earlier this month – do not.
“I am fortunate to tell what happened to me, in hopes things could be different for other women” Cade told a Senate subcommittee Tuesday.
Appearing as the star witness at a hearing on domestic violence in the workplace, Cade said women routinely face harassment, stalking and death threats at their jobs – a place their abuser knows they will be. […]
No one should be fired because they are a victim of domestic or sexual violence, said Cade, whose quiet, calm tone belied the horror of her words. Victims also should be allowed to take time off to go to court, to change their locks or take other protective steps, she said.
They also need unemployment protection if they have to quit to evade their abuser, said Cade, who twice was a top sales producer for T Mobile Wireless, the phone service provider she worked for when she was attacked. […]
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., agreed. She introduced a bill Tuesday that would make such insurance mandatory nationwide and take other steps to protect victims of domestic violence. Washington is one of 22 states that do not include domestic violence as a reason for unemployment insurance.
“Each day we get terrible reminders that domestic violence doesn’t stay at home,” said Murray, who chairs a Senate subcommittee on employment and workplace safety. “It follows people into their workplace – posing safety, financial and legal problems for victims, employers and other workers.”
Kudos to Senator Murray. She’s not my favorite Democratic Senator, but she’s moving up my list because of this. Let’s hope her bill gains enough support to pass both houses of Congress. I’d like to see Bush try to make the case for a veto.
Senate Subcommittee on employment and workplace safety
