Aldi Australia offers paid domestic violence leave to employees

Aldi Australia will provide 10 days’ paid family and domestic violence leave annually to full-time and part-time employees.

Aldi will open in Lower Plenty. Looking for a wide shot of the site with workers in the shot Could you please also get a close up of the Aldi sign that says opening on Sep 17.

Aldi Australia will provide 10 days’ paid family and domestic violence leave annually to full-time and part-time employees, saying it wants to help any staff member “experiencing this terrible crime”.

The commitment matches the promise made by Labor leader Bill Shorten and follows a Fair Work Commission decision in March granting five days of unpaid domestic violence leave to award-covered workers.

Aldi said the company had a responsibility to help drive change. Casual employees will also be able to take 10 days off but the leave will be unpaid.

Viktor Jakupec, managing director at Aldi Australia., said domestic violence was a “crime which we all have a responsibility to challenge and change”.

Under the policy, full-time and part-time employees will also receive a one-off payment of $250 for incidental expenses associated with family and domestic violence.

Employees will receive help to access support services and assistance in changing work location, if requested, and, where possible.

Aldi employs 12,000 workers across Australia. Asked how many were full-time, part-time and casual as well as the gender split, a spokesman said:

“Across our store network we have an even gender split. Our leaders know that the more diverse talent we have in our business, the better our business outcomes; so we are continually working to improve diversity.

“More than 95 per cent of our workforce are on fixed-hour contracts that could be classified as a mix of full-time and part-time roles. We believe in providing long term employment opportunities that are supported by ongoing training and development opportunities.”