Compassionate care leave now allowed in Alberta
Alberta
Reminder: Compassionate care leave now allowed
Effective Feb. 1, amendments allowing for unpaid compassionate care leave came into force in Alberta.
Changes to the Employment Standards Code allow employees to take up to eight weeks off work, without pay, to provide care or support to an ill family member.
To be eligible for the leave, employees must be employed for a minimum of 52 consecutive weeks and have a medical certificate verifying the family member is seriously ill and could die within 26 weeks. Employees will generally have to give their employer at least two weeks’ notice before taking the leave and need to provide the employer with a copy of the certificate. When the leave is over, the employer is required to reinstate the employee in the same job or in a comparable one with at least the same earnings and benefits accrued to the time the employee began the leave.
