The new Carer’s Leave Policy – effective April 2024 is in addition to dependents leave but there are a few differences – dependents leave is to be used for urgent family or dependent reasons whilst carer’s leave can be used to provide care or make arrangements for care.

The right to leave will be available to employees from day 1 and a dependant can be defined as a spouse, civil partner, child, parent, a person who lives in the same household as the employee (other than by reason of them being their employee, tenant, lodger or boarder), or the wider catch-all provision, of a person who reasonably relies on the employee for care and has a long term need.

Employees are entitled to take 1 unpaid week in a rolling 52 week period whereas there is no definition of leave allowed under dependents leave – just that it must be “reasonable”

Read more on the Gov.UK website https://www.gov.uk/carers-leave

Guidelines

Employees using the leave must take a minimum of half a working day at a time; a working day means the employee’s usual working pattern. There is no need for the leave to be used on consecutive days either. Employees could therefore take five separate days over a 12-month rolling period.

Employees are required to provide notice, although this does not need to be in writing. The notice must include the fact that the employee is entitled to take carer’s leave and the day(s) that will be taken.

Employees will be required to give notice which is either twice the length of time being requested, or three days, whichever is the longest. Employers can choose to waive the need to provide notice if they wish.

Employers do have the right to refuse the request but in doing so there may be a possibility that if someone is in a difficult situation they may resort to calling in sick.

Additionally whilst an employer cannot ask for proof of a dependent employees can be reminded that an abuse of this right would be taken very seriously and could lead to disciplinary proceedings.

If you want to understand how it works Contact Us!