Employers in Illinois must now allow workers 2 weeks’ unpaid leave for the death of a child. Illinois appears to be the second state to mandate bereavement leave for private employers; Oregon adopted a similar measure in 2014.
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Illinois’ Child Bereavement Leave Act took effect July 29 and builds on the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): both employers and employees are covered if they are subject to the FMLA. The state law notes that it does not increase an employee’s FMLA allotment. Instead, it effectively adds leave for the death of a child to the reasons that an employee in Illinois may use FMLA.
Employees may use the time off to grieve, make funeral arrangements, and attend the funeral.
Illinois’ law defines “child” as an employee’s son or daughter who is a biological, adopted, or foster child; a stepchild; a legal ward; or a child of a person standing in loco parentis. It does not include an age limit.
The leave must be completed within 60 days after the date that the parent was notified of the child’s death. The law allows employers to require documentation of the death, requires that employees’ provide 48 hours’ notice when reasonable, and sets out requirements for when there is more than one death. Furthermore, the law prohibits retaliation against employees who exercise their rights under the law.
In Oregon, employers with 25 or more employees must allow eligible employees to take up to 2 weeks’ leave for the death of a family member. A “family member” is the spouse of an employee; a same-sex domestic partner; the biological, adoptive, or foster parent or child of the employee; the grandparent or grandchild of the employee; a parent-in-law of the employee; or a person with whom the employee was or is in a relationship of in loco parentis.