New Leave Amendments Introduced for Federal Employees
January 18, 2022
On December 17, 2021, the Canada Labour Code was amended to include the following:
Bereavement Leave
In the event of the death of an immediate family member or a family member, employees are entitled to a leave of absence from employment for up to ten days. The leave may be taken during the period that begins on the day on which the death occurs and ends six weeks after the latest of the days on which any funeral, burial or memorial service of that deceased person occurs.
In the event of the death of a child of the employee or the death of a child of their spouse or common-law partner, an employee is entitled to a leave of absence from employment of up to eight weeks that may be taken during the period that begins on the day on which the death occurs and ends twelve weeks after the latest of the days on which any funeral, burial or memorial service of the child occurs.
In the event of a stillbirth experienced by an employee or their spouse or common-law partner or where they would have been a parent of the child as a result of the pregnancy, an employee is entitled to a leave of absence from employment of up to eight weeks that may be taken during the period that begins on the day on which the stillbirth occurs and ends twelve weeks after the latest of the days on which any funeral, burial or memorial service in respect of the stillbirth occurs.
Leave with pay
Section 206.6.(1)(a) of the Labour Code which entitled workers to a leave of absence from employment for illness or injury has been repealed and replaced with the following entitlements:
(a) After completing 30 days of continuous employment with an employer, an employee is entitled to three days of medical leave absence with pay and, after 60 days of continuous employment with the employer, at the beginning of each month after completing one month of continuous employment with the employer, one day of medical leave of absence with pay up to a maximum of 10 days;
(b) In each subsequent calendar year, at the beginning of each month after completing one month of continuous employment with the employer, one day of medical leave of absence with pay, up to a maximum of 10 days.
(c) Each day of medical leave with pay must be paid at their regular rate of wages for their normal hours of work, and that pay is for all purposes considered to be wages;
(d) Any days of medical leave of absence with pay that an employee does not take in a calendar year can be carried forward to January 1 of the following calendar year and will count to the ten day maximum in the new year;
(e) Medical leave of absence with pay may be taken in one or more periods. The employer may require that each period of leave be of not less than one day’s duration;
Certificate – leave with pay
(f) The employer may, in writing and no later than 15 days after the return to work of an employee who has taken a medical leave of absence with pay of at least five consecutive days, require the employee to provide a certificate issued by a health care practitioner certifying that the employee was incapable of working for the period of their medical leave of absence with pay;
Certificate – without pay
(g) If a medical leave of absence without pay is three days or longer, the employer may require that the employee provide a certificate issued by a health care practitioner certifying that the employee was incapable of working for the period of their medical leave of absence without pay.
Note that the Canada Labour Code applies only to federally regulated employers and does not amend employee rights in provincially regulated sectors.
Expertise
Employment Law
