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# More states provide paid ‘Safe Leave’ for domestic violence survivors
- URL: https://www.womensrightsdata.org/more-states-provide-paid-safe-leave-for-domestic-violence-survivors/
- Published: 2026-10-20T16:31:45.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-20T17:30:18.000Z
- Author: Lisa Rockelli Gordon
- Tags: Workplace Rights, Violence & Safety, National, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Minnesota, Arizona, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Maine, Nevada

Parental leave isn’t the only kind of time off that can keep a woman safe and employed. “Safe leave” lets workers take time off to deal with domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking: going to court, seeing a doctor or counselor, or moving somewhere safer.

The need is real. Federal data show [9 million women](https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-state-of-safe-leave/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) reported intimate partner violence in a single year, and in one study more than half of survivors lost at least one job because of the abuse.

By the [Center for American Progress’s count,](https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-state-of-safe-leave/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) 15 states plus D.C. let workers use their paid sick time as safe leave: **Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont** and **Washington**.

Six states (**Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey** and **Oregon**) also cover safe leave through their paid family and medical leave programs. In **Maine**, **Nevada**, and **Illinois**, general paid time off laws can be used for any reason, including violence.

### An Example: Colorado

Like paid family and parental leave for women, [every state is different](https://www.ncsl.org/labor-and-employment/state-family-and-medical-leave-laws?ref=womensrightsdata.org). For example, in **Colorado**, employees who are victims or whose family members are victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or harassment also can use paid sick leave for any of the following reasons:

- to seek related medical attention for themselves or their family members to recover from a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition;
- to obtain related services from a victim services organization;
- to obtain related mental health or other counseling;
- to seek relocation for related reasons; or to seek related legal services, including preparation for or participation in civil or criminal proceedings.

**Colorado** state workers can also access extended leave related to domestic violence through the state's paid family and medical leave program.

### Who’s Covered?

Most of these laws reach nearly all private-sector workers, and some cover public employees too. Most let you take leave when a family member is the victim, but **California** and **Connecticut** limit it to the worker’s own experience, and Massachusetts and Oregon cover only the worker or their child.

At least 17 states plus D.C. offer unpaid, job-protected leave for survivors.

**Virginia** is the newest addition. Its new law lets survivors use up to four weeks of their paid leave for court dates, medical and mental health care, and relocation. About [3.2 million private-sector workers](https://www.fxbgadvance.com/p/virginias-new-paid-leave-program?ref=womensrightsdata.org) will be eligible.

### Related WRDI Reporting

[Paid leave in the states: Who's covered, and who's left out?](https://www.womensrightsdata.org/paid-leave-in-the-states-whos-covered-and-whos-left-out/) (Oct 26)

### Resources

[Bipartisan Policy Center: State Paid Family Leave Laws Across the U.S.](https://bipartisanpolicy.org/explainer/state-paid-family-leave-laws-across-the-u-s/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) \- State Job-Protected Family and Medical Leave Laws  
[NCSL: State Family and Medical Leave Laws](https://www.ncsl.org/labor-and-employment/state-family-and-medical-leave-laws?ref=womensrightsdata.org) \- State-by-state rules, including leave for state employees  
[KFF: Paid Family and Sick Leave in the U.S.](https://www.kff.org/womens-health-policy/paid-family-and-sick-leave-in-the-u-s/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) \- Who has access and who doesn’t  
[Center for American Progress: The State of Safe Leave](https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-state-of-safe-leave/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) \- Which states offer leave for survivors of violence  
[A Better Balance](https://www.abetterbalance.org/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) \- Free legal help line at 1-833-NEED-ABB (1-833-633-3222)  
[National Partnership for Women & Families](https://nationalpartnership.org/?ref=womensrightsdata.org) \- Research and state paid leave tracking