People tend to think of domestic violence—when they think about it at all—as a private matter that occurs behind the closed doors of a family’s home. But more and more, domestic violence is spilling into other areas—including the workplace. Yesterday’s fatal shooting in Albuquerque, New Mexico is a sad example. 3 Dead in Workplace Shooting Angry about a child custody dispute with his girlfriend, Robert Reza shot her Monday after a confrontation outside the New Mexico manufacturing plant where she works. He then forced his way inside and killed two workers before turning the gun on himself. Four others were wounded. Police said the rampage was motivated by Reza’s disgust over a domestic violence dispute involving the girlfriend, who was in critical condition as of Monday evening. She had told co-workers that she planned to report domestic violence to authorities. But it’s unclear whether management was aware of the situation. The police noted that Reza had been involved in a domestic violence complaint in another city. ON Workplace Violence Law Does a company have a duty to protect workers from domestic violence at the hands of husbands, boyfriends, etc.? In Ontario, they do. The most unique feature of the province’s new workplace violence and harassment requirements is the domestic violence provision. This language seems to be a response to the 2005 murder of nurse Lori Dupont by her ex-boyfriend, a doctor at the hospital where she worked who later committed suicide. Senior hospital administrators knew about the ex-boyfriend’s unstable behaviour and that he’d made threats to Dupont. But on the day she was murdered, the nurse and doctor were scheduled to work together. Under the new regulation, employers in Ontario can’t ignore domestic violence, at least to the extent that they can protect workers from such violence in the workplace. Employers must take reasonable precautions to protect workers if they become aware, or should reasonably be aware, that domestic violence that would likely expose a worker to physical injury may occur in the workplace. But the law doesn’t spell out the specific precautions employers should take. So it remains to be seen exactly how companies will fulfill this duty. Many Ontario employers may have focused on complying with the more typical workplace violence and harassment requirements, such as creating policies, conducting risk assessments, etc. But the domestic violence provision can’t be ignored. First, it’s the law. Second, this type of requirement could have prevented the Albuquerque shooting if that had been the law in New Mexico. So employers in Ontario should take note of this tragedy and ensure that they comply with the domestic violence requirements in the OHS law.