[s.13(1)] An employee is entitled to leave with pay from his or her employment for urgent family reasons, owing to the injury or illness of any of the persons listed below. Entitlement to force majeure leave is limited to circumstances where the immediate presence of the employee, at the place where the ill or injured person is situated, is indispensable.
[s.14(4)] During an absence on force majeure leave an employee is regarded as being in the employment of the employer, and retains all of his or her employment rights.
[s.13(2)] The persons referred to above are:
- a child or adoptive child of the employee;
- the spouse of the employee, or a person with whom the employee is living as husband or wife;
- a person to whom the employee is in loco parentis;
- a brother or sister of the employee;
- a parent or grandparent of the employee.
[s.14(4)] Force majeure leave is paid leave. It cannot be treated as part of any other leave [s.14(5)] (e.g. sick leave, adoptive leave, maternity leave, annual leave or parental leave) to which the employee is entitled.
Notification of Force Majeure Leave
[s.13(3)] As soon as reasonably
practicable after his or her return to work after an absence on force majeure
leave, an employee must confirm to his or her employer that he or she has taken
the leave. The notice must specify the information contained in the Form at
Appendix B.
Maximum Entitlement
[s.13(4)] An employee may not be absent on force
majeure leave [s.13(5)] for more than 3 days in any 12 consecutive months, or 5
days in any 36 consecutive months. Absence for part of a day is counted as one
day of force majeure leave.
