‘Horrifying’ trend: women are quitting jobs due to pressure from male partners

As of the second week of November, 81 women have died violently in Australia in 2024 as a result of murder, manslaughter or neglect.   

Amid this national crisis, prominent feminist and researcher Professor Anne Summers said that domestic violence is not only endangering women’s lives but also sabotaging their professional careers. 

Summers previewed the findings of her upcoming report, The cost to women’s employment of domestic violence, at the Conference on Women’s Safety & Financial Security, hosted by the College of Business and Economics at The Australian National University (ANU). 

“The report, set to be released in February 2025, shows that large numbers of women are either leaving the workforce or being prevented from going to work under pressure from their male partners,” Summers, a researcher from the University of Technology Sydney, said.

“This means a lot of men are threatened by the fact that their partners are working.  

“We do not know the reasons, but it must be an irrational decision. Anything that reduces household income would seem to be irrational. It’s got to be a power or control thing. These men do not want women to have independence. 

“The figures are horrifying. It is very important we understand how serious domestic violence is in this country at the moment.” 

The study, produced in collaboration with ANU research fellow Kristen Sobeck from the Crawford School of Public Policy, also identifies the impact of stalking as a tactic through which perpetrators harass and control women at their workplaces.  

New findings suggest stalking has largely moved online. 

“Stalking is usually done electronically, sending a thousand text messages in a single day or constantly ringing the woman at work,” Summers said.  

“The most common form of abuse happens using mobile phones, either through calls or texts.” 

The cost is a follow-up to The choice, a groundbreaking 2022 report published by Summers which revealed the devastating realities women face when wanting to leave violent relationships, such as extreme financial hardships and poverty.  

“Anthony Albanese did listen to the findings of our 2022 report. He told me he read the report from cover to cover. And, as a result, he did make policy changes to the Parenting Payment Single,” Summers said. 

“With this new report, there is not one single thing you can do to fix the problem, but the Prime Minister needs to understand that women are being forced out of employment as a form of domestic violence. And we must try to find ways to stop that.”  

At the two-day conference, researchers from all over the world considered solutions to the complex and multifaceted issue of gender-based violence.  

“There is no central register of the work produced in this space and this conference gives us an excellent opportunity to learn what is happening and what is being done overseas,” Summers said. 

This information may be distressing to some readers. If you need support in regard to sexual assault, domestic or family violence, please contact 1800RESPECT or call 000 if you are in danger now.