Newly Signed Law Expands Unpaid Bereavement Leave, Effective January 1, 2023
Jun 16, 2022
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On June 9, 2022, the Governor signed into law Public Act 102-1050 (SB 3120) which amends the Child Bereavement Leave Act effective January 1, 2023. The newly signed law changes the title to “Family Bereavement Leave Act” and requires an employer (same definition as under the FMLA) to provide up to 2 weeks (10 work days) of unpaid bereavement leave to an “eligible employee” (same definition as under the FMLA):
- in the event of the death of a “covered family member”, including an employee’s child, stepchild, spouse, domestic partner, sibling, parent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, grandchild, grandparent, or stepparent; or
- in the event of a miscarriage, an unsuccessful round of intrauterine insemination or of an assisted reproductive technology procedure, a failed adoption match or adoption that is not finalized because it is contested by another party, a failed surrogacy agreement, a diagnosis that negatively impacts pregnancy or fertility, or a stillbirth. For these reasons, the Illinois Department of Labor is to develop a form to be filled out by the applicable health care practitioner or adoption or surrogacy organization certifying that such an event has occurred. An employer may not require that the employee identify which type of event occurred necessitating the basis for leave.
An employer may still request reasonable documentation to support a request for leave for the employee’s child (the current state of the law) and for a covered family member (effective 1/1/23).
Please contact any Robbins Schwartz attorney with questions regarding how to best prepare for these upcoming requirements, including policy and other document reviews.
