What does the Carer's Leave Act mean for me as an employee? Expand The Carer’s Leave Act means that all employees will be entitled to one work week of unpaid leave to look after a vulnerable loved one with a long-term care need.
Can an employee take multiple days off using unpaid carer's leave? Expand Yes. You can take up to one working week of unpaid carer's leave. For most full-time employees, this will be 5 days. This number will vary for carers who work part-time. Please also be aware that the amount of notice you will need to give your employer will increase depending on the amount of unpaid Carer's Leave you plan to take.
How much notice do I need to give my employer when I plan to take unpaid Carer's Leave? Expand As an employee, you would need to give double the amount of requested days' leave as notice - except for taking 1 day, which requires 3 days of notice. Half days are rounded up. 0.5 Days requires 3 Days' notice. 1 Day requires 3 Days' notice. 2 Days requires 4 Days' notice. 3 Days requires 6 Days' notice. 4 Days requires 8 Days' notice. 5 Days requires 10 Days' notice.
Are parents classed as carers? Expand No. There are different workplace laws in place for parents, such as unpaid parental leave. You could only take unpaid Carer's Leave if your child has a long-term illness or disability.
How do I find out who in my organisation are unpaid carers? Expand With over 25,000 unpaid carers living in Gateshead (around 13% of the town's population), it is most likely that some of your employees are unpaid carers. Consider taking some time at the next staff meeting the raise awareness of unpaid carers, the Carer's Leave Act and Gateshead Carers.
Can a Carer's Leave request be rejected? Expand No. Employers can postpone the request but cannot reject it. Postponing the request must only be done if you believe that you 'reasonably consider that the operation of the business would be unduly disrupted' if the leave was approved. If postponed, employers must; Agree to permit the employee to take a period of Carer's Leave of the same duration. Consult the employee and confirm a new date on which the leave can be taken within one month of the original requested date. Give employees notice in writing of the postponement with the reasons for this and the agreed date of when can the leave be taken. This notice must be provided to your employee within seven days of their original request.
What are some ways we can go further to support unpaid carers in our workforce? Expand An organisation can choose to make any number of the 5 days of unpaid Carer's Leave into paid Carer's Leave. Consider offering flexible working arrangements that could help employees stay in work for contracted hours while still being about to manage their caring responsibilities. This could also be taken a step further by offering opportunities to work from home for a half day if employees requested a half day of Carer's Leave.