How to Get Bereavement Leave in Illinois. [Eligibility & Rights]
Similar to Oregon, Illinois has introduced and implemented laws governing the leave taken by employees when they are grieving the death of a child. The details are as follows:
Bereavement Leave Illinois And Federal Law
Effective July 29, 2016, the state of Illinois implemented a law that states that individuals have suffered the death of a child are entitled to be given a bereavement leave from there employers.
For Whom Can Employees Use Bereavement Leave
The Child Bereavement Leave Act is applicable to the individual’s children only. A child can be defined as a natural child, a foster child, an adopted child, a grandchild, a stepchild, or a child under local parents.
Whether an employee can get bereavement leave for the death of any other close family member depends on the company or organization’s own policies as there are no explicit laws regarding the latter situation.
How Much Time Off One Can Get For A Bereavement Leave
The employee may be given 10 days or up to 2 weeks of unpaid leave under the Child Bereavement Act. this leave can be extended to up to 6 weeks if the employee suffers the death of two children in a 12 month period.
The length of the bereavement leave taken for the passing of other family members may vary from organization to organization. However, employees generally get at least one day of paid or up to three days of unpaid leave.
Eligibility to take Bereavement Leave Illinois
Employees who are eligible for the Family and Medical Leave Act or FMLA are also considered to be eligible for this bereavement leave. The Illinois state bereavement act is only applicable to natural, adopted, or foster children of the individual.
The individual should preferably show an intention to opt for a bereavement leave before 48 hours of actually taking it. However, he or she will be exempted if it is impractical or unreasonable to ask for a prior notice of unexpected deaths.
The employee may also be required to submit some form of documentation to prove the death of the family member such as the death certificate, a published obituary, or some other official document from the crematorium or any government agency.
=>You May like to read Bereavement Leave in the State of USA
Rights Of Employees On Bereavement Leave Illinois
The law that allows bereavement leave on the account of the death of a child calls for an unpaid leave of up to two weeks. This means that the employee will not be paid for the time that he or she is absent from the workplace. Also, bereavement leave and leave taken under the FMLA law are considered to be different.
Hence, an employee is allowed to first take leave the bereavement law and still be able to take additional leave during the 12 month period under the FMLA. in the case that an employer protests or takes strict action against an employee practising their legal rights, the former will be subjected to penalties which are $500 for the first offence and $1000 for repeated actions.
