Parental Bereavement Leave was introduced in 2020 and allows parents who lose a child two weeks of paid leave in order to grieve. Parents are eligible if their child dies under the age of 18 or dies stillborn after 24 weeks of pregnancy.
The Employment Rights Bill that is currently making its way through the House of Lords was recently amended to include eligibility for those who suffer a miscarriage before the 24th week of pregnancy.
It has been suggested that the amount of leave for those who have suffered a miscarriage before 24 weeks of pregnancy may be at least a week but the precise length will be open to consultation. It has also not been confirmed if there will be a pay element attached to this leave or not.
The reason for this proposed change is that most miscarriages take place in the first 12 weeks of a pregnancy. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner stated that the amendment would give “people time away from work to grieve”.
In addition to this, the Employment Rights Bill also includes a general right for employees to take bereavement leave. Currently, parental bereavement leave is the only statutory form of bereavement leave. For example, if an employee’s spouse or parent dies it is up to the employer to decide how much, if any, time off the employee receives and whether this leave is to be paid or not.
Under the Employment Rights Bill, employees will be entitled to at least one week of unpaid bereavement leave from the first day of employment if a close loved one passes away. The term “loved one” has not been defined but will likely include spouses, parents, siblings and other close family members.
The government has recently published an ‘implementation roadmap’ which states that the changes to bereavement leave will likely come into force in 2027. It has been speculated that any changes to parental bereavement leave will also come into force at the same time.
The Employment Rights Bill will be making substantial changes to the legal landscape and these changes will be coming into force at various different times. Employers will need to keep a close eye on developments and be ready to change policies and procedures prior to the changes coming into force.
If you have any questions on any of the issues raised in this article, please contact Alan Sutherland.