ECONOMIC JUSTICE & EMPOWERMENT INITIATIVE Financial abuse occurs in nearly 98% of abusive relationships. Financial/economic abuse is when one intimate partner has

ECONOMIC JUSTICE & EMPOWERMENT INITIATIVE Financial abuse occurs in nearly 98% of abusive relationships. Financial/economic abuse is when one intimate partner has control over the other partner’s access to economic resources, which diminishes the victim’s capacity to support themselves and forces them to depend on the perpetrator financially. Economic abuse is cited as the main reason victims stay or return to abusive relationships.VIP Economic Justice Program Initiative aims to help domestic violence victims overcome immediate economic barriers and secure long-term financial independence and safety. The Initiative is a multi-faceted statewide effort coordinated through VIP and implemented in community-based domestic violence programs. PCADV Economic Justice and Empowerment Initiative Framework Domestic violence programs implement various forms of economic justice and empowerment work in their everyday interactions with survivors. The Initiative empowers domestic violence advocates to utilize tools and multiple strategies when working with victims to address their immediate safety and economic concerns, then steadily progress toward their long-term financial independence to live safe and autonomous lives. The initiative focuses on providing specific individually tailored information to victims in the following critical points of victimization: Crisis, Post-Crisis Short-Term and Long-Term safety and independence. Domestic violence programs that participate in the Initiative are tasked with: Teaching Financial Basics and Enhancing Credit by: • Providing some form of financial information to all service recipients • Facilitating financial workshops • Providing copies of credit reports • Providing credit repair and building education Increasing Job Readiness and Training by: • Facilitating career workshops • Maintaining a computer center equipped with office and resume software • Linking survivors to soft skills building opportunities Promoting Long-Term Stability by: • Providing information on housing • Providing information on accessing higher education • Providing information on civic duty Expanding Partnerships by: • Partnering with organizations to enhance access to higher education • Partnering with local businesses to provide employment, volunteer and mentorship opportunities • Partnering with organizations that provide job skills training • Providing access to GED information.