What Family Members Qualify For Bereavement leave: Bereavement leave, often known as compassionate leave, is a type of paid time off that employees can take following the death of a close friend or family member.
When can compassionate leave be taken
Employees can take compassionate leave if:
- a member of their immediate family or household dies, or contracts or develops a life-threatening illness or injury
- a baby in their immediate family or household is stillborn
- they have a miscarriage
- their current spouse or de facto partner has a miscarriage.
More information is available about Parental leave for stillbirth, premature birth or infant death.
Immediate family
An employee’s immediate family includes their:
- spouse or former spouse
- de facto partner or former de facto partner
- child
- parent
- grandparent
- grandchild
- sibling.
Immediate family also includes:
- the immediate family of the employee’s spouse or de facto partner (or former spouse or de facto partner)
- step-relations (for example, step-parent and step-child)
- adoptive relations.
Employees can take compassionate leave for other relatives (for example, cousins, aunts and uncles) if they are a member of the employee’s household or if their employer agrees.