From April 2024, all employees have the right to request one week of unpaid carer’s leave per year. The right is available to employees who have a dependant with a long-term care need and who want to be absent from work to provide or arrange care for that dependant. We have broken-down some of the key features of this new right below:
What is a “dependant?”
An employee’s dependants can include:
- their husband, wife, civil partner, or partner
- their child
- their parent
- a person who lives in their household (not tenants, lodgers, or employees)
- a person who relies on them for care, such as an elderly neighbour
What is a “long term care need”?
A long-term care need means a disability, an illness or injury that is likely to require care for over 3 months or a care need relating to old age.
How can employees request time off?
Requests can be in consecutive or non-consecutive half-days, full days or as one week-long block.
Employees must give notice in writing of their intention to take carer’s leave. They must confirm their entitlement to take it and give whichever is the longer of at least twice the amount of notice than the period of leave requested, or three days’ notice.
What should employers do when they receive a request?
1. As an employer, you can postpone a request if your business would be unduly disrupted. In these circumstances, you must give notice of the postponement before the leave was due to begin. You must explain why the postponement is necessary.
2. If you postpone the leave, you must allow the leave to be taken within one month of the start-date originally requested and consult the employee about rescheduling the leave.
3. Note: Employees are protected from detriment and dismissal when they take or seek to take carer’s leave, or the employer believes they are likely to do so.
4. We recommend creating or updating your carer’s leave policy or add reference to carer’s leave to any existing policy dealing with other family/dependant leave.
Further reading
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