As they did last year, a few dozen men from different walks of life met Friday morning in Montreal to discuss violence against women and what they could do, individually and collectively, to counter it.

Among them were police officers, union representatives, unemployed people, rappers, politicians and lawyers, all responding to the invitation from the Fédération des maisons d'hébergement pour femmes.

Some men reported that they had witnessed domestic violence against their mother as a child; others said they knew a co-worker who had been the victim of violence at home, without anyone suspecting it at work despite repeated absences.

Larry Rousseau, Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress, highlighted the initiative taken by Ontario and Manitoba to pass legislation providing for five days of paid leave for spousal abuse cases.

Unions in Quebec, including the FTQ, are pushing for a similar law in the province. These leaves of absence allow a woman who is a victim of violence to meet with a lawyer and look for new housing, among other immediate tasks, said Rousseau.