Q & A: What is compassionate leave?
There are many types of leave that employees have a right to in Australia. Getting your head around them all can be tricky. The focus of this article is compassionate leave, also referred to as bereavement leave.
Compassionate leave is a key provision of the Fair Work Act. It enables employees to take time off to handle challenging personal circumstances without having to juggle the added demands of work.
In this article, we explain exactly what compassionate leave is and how it supports employees in times of personal hardship.
The information provided in this article is accurate as of 06/12/2024. For the most up-to-date information, please refer to the Fair Work Act 2009 and the National Employment Standards.
What is compassionate leave?
The Fair Work Act 2009 and National Employment Standards (NES) define compassionate leave or bereavement leave as an employee entitlement that allows for time off to deal with specific personal situations. These personal situations can include death, life-threatening illness, or serious injury of an immediate family or household member.
It's worth noting that compassionate leave isn't the same as sick and carer's leave. Sick and carer's leave allows employees time off to manage personal illness or the non-life threatening illness or injury of a family member.
Some employees may have access to paid compassionate leave, whilst others have a right to unpaid compassionate leave. This typically comes down to their employment type. For example, full-time employees and part-time employees get two days of paid compassionate leave per occasion. Casual employees have a right to two days of unpaid compassionate leave per occasion.
Learn more about compassionate leave entitlements and employer obligations
Below, you can explore how bereavement leave serves its purpose:
Emotional support and mental well-being
The core aim of compassionate leave is to provide employees with emotional health support during a traumatic event. An employee faced with a family emergency, such as the death of a loved one, may find themselves overwhelmed with grief. Access to compassionate leave allows them time and space to process their emotions without needing to consider work responsibilities. This time off means they can focus on their mental well-being, grieve, attend counseling, and mitigate burnout.
Unresolved grief can sometimes create ongoing mental health issues. So, compassionate leave plays an essential role during times of personal crises. It can put employees in the best possible position to return to work with the ability to effectively manage their personal and professional responsibilities.
Support for family members in crisis
Bereavement leave gives employees the opportunity to support their family. It gives them time to be physically and emotionally present during hard times. Whether it's to help with medical care, attend appointments or simply provide emotional comfort, compassionate leave gives employees the freedom to prioritise their family.
Compassionate leave goes beyond enabling an employee to provide support to family members. By allowing them to be present during a loved one’s critical health situation, it can offer emotional closure and peace of mind. In turn, this can help the employee process the situation and take comfort from their involvement.
Time to handle practical matters
With times of crisis often comes practical responsibilities and administrative duties. These may include making funeral arrangements, managing legal paperwork, or handling a deceased family member's estate. Compassionate leave gives employees the time they require to deal with these responsibilities and duties. It enables them to focus fully on these important tasks without the added overwhelm of their professional obligations.
Promoting a compassionate work culture
Aside from offering direct support, bereavement leave also creates an understanding and nurturing work environment. It contributes toward employees feeling cared for during personal hardships. As a result, they're often more likely to be loyal to their employer. They might even experience a boosted sense of motivation and engagement at work.
Manage compassionate leave effortlessly with Rippling
As you can see, compassionate leave is key to supporting employees during personal crises. Managing it correctly also helps you maintain compliance with the NES. With Rippling, leave management becomes effortless. The all-in-one HR platform, built on a single source of truth, can manage leave requests, track leave entitlements, and all while integrating with payroll.
Disclaimer: Rippling and its affiliates do not provide tax, accounting, or legal advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide or be relied on for tax, accounting, or legal advice. You should consult your own tax, accounting, and legal advisors before engaging in any related activities or transactions.
