New Zealand becomes first country to introduce paid leave for victims of domestic violence

On Thursday it was confirmed that New Zealand will be the first country in the world to offer paid leave for victims of domestic violence.

The landmark legislation was passed by 63 votes to 57 in New Zealand's parliament after seven years of work by Green MP Jan Logie.

Victims of domestic violence in New Zealand will now be allowed to take 10 days paid leave to escape their abusive partner.

The law will protect all domestic violence victims from being dismissed from their jobs or having their positions downgraded.

Logie, who had worked in women's refuge for domestic violence survivors prior to becoming an MP hailed the passing of the bill.

Mashable quotes her as saying:

All too often, victims have to leave their jobs because of this, and it makes them more reliant on their abusive partner and means their employer has to recruit and train up new staff.

It's a lose-lose situation.

Today, we will become the first country in the world to provide these protections as universal entitlements.

Today we stand for a future free of domestic violence.

New Zealand has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the world with around 105,000 reports of family violence being recorded a year.

Yet, it is believed that 80 per cent of incidents can go unreported.

Reaction to this historic bill in New Zealand and around the world has been greeted with positivity and marks a significant moment in the fight against domestic violence.

People are now hoping that other countries can follow New Zealand's example.

New Zealand based domestic violence charity The Aunties shared a thread on Twitter which highlighted just how important the passing of this bill is.

Many thanks have been personally extended to Jan Logie and her tireless work on the legislation.