An Evaluation of a Workforce Development Program for Domestic Violence Survivors in New York City Final Evaluation Report

By Marina Duane, Meredith Dank, Andrea Hughes, Storm Ervin, Emily Tiry, Libby Doyle

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 1 in 4 women and 1 in 10 men experience intimate partner violence in their lifetimes (Smith et al. 2018). In 2019, nearly 1.2 million incidents of domestic violence (DV) were reported nationwide (Morgan and Truman 2020). In 2021 in New York City, 93,753 calls were made to the New York City Domestic Violence Hotline, and the New York City Police Department responded to 113,059 domestic intimate partner violence incidents (ENDGBV 2021a). These experiences can have wide-reaching consequences for survivors and their families. Financial hardship can make achieving and maintaining physical and psychological safety especially challenging, as survivors may not have the means to support themselves and their children. To maintain control and minimize survivors’ ability to leave the relationships, abusive partners often use tactics that prevent survivors from accessing employment, finances, and other economic opportunities (Adams 2011). And people who do leave abusive partners may not have had opportunities to gain the experience, skills, and education necessary to be competitive in the workforce, which can make it difficult for them to obtain living-wage employment and financial security (Adams 2011). Moreover, low socioeconomic status, unemployment, and previous exposure to violence are risk factors for experiencing domestic violence (Renner and Whitney 2012; Schafer, Caetano, and Cunradi 2004). Accordingly, economic empowerment is vital if survivors are to recover from domestic violence and maintain safety and wellbeing for themselves and their families

Washington DC:Urban Institute, 2023. 77p.