COMMONWEALTH BANK UNITES TO SHINE A LIGHT ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Commonwealth Bank today joins forces with the Australian National Committee for UN Women to light up Commonwealth Bank Place in orange, as part of the global UNiTE campaign to end violence against women.

Ian Narev, Commonwealth Bank CEO, said, “We are strong advocates of gender equality and the empowerment of women. A critical part of this is the right of women to be free from abuse. We hope our partnership with the Australian National Committee for UN Women will raise awareness of domestic violence, which is a scourge on our society."

Commonwealth Bank has committed to partnering with the Australian National Committee for UN Women over the next three years in a joint effort to accelerate gender equality and female empowerment.

“Perpetrators and victims of domestic violence work in our organisations and are among our customers. We need to raise awareness of domestic violence and its grave effects, voice society’s intolerance for it, and provide practical support for victims.

“We have measures in place to support employees and customers who are suffering the physical, emotional and financial impact of abuse, and to educate our employees. We need to keep looking at ways of improving these measures, including sharing our experiences with others and learning from what others are doing. Our collective goal must be to end domestic violence,” said Mr Narev.

The Commonwealth Bank Place buildings in Sydney will be among the first in a series of global landmarks to be lit orange on 25 November, marking International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. The UN campaign invites people around the globe to ‘orange the world’ to raise awareness of gender related violence and symbolise a brighter future without violence.

Welcoming the announcement that Commonwealth Bank has renewed its partnership with the Australian National Committee for UN Women, Executive Director, Julie McKay, said, “We are proud to work together with CBA as a Platinum Partner for a further three years. CBA has shown not only a commitment, but demonstrated change by actively working to make the elimination of violence against women a workplace responsibility.”

Commonwealth Bank domestic violence initiatives include:

• Domestic and family violence training for relevant employees
• Domestic violence toolkits for employees and managers, including how to build a personal safety plan, support and counselling contacts
• Special Leave options
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP), available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
• Services and support relating to financial hardship through our Employee Banking and Customer Assist Teams.