Using bereavement leave
Employees do not have to use bereavement leave immediately, or on consecutive days. Following are examples of bereavement leave allowable under the Holidays Act 2003:
- Bob is entitled to three days’ paid bereavement leave when his brother Jack is killed in an accident while living overseas. The funeral is in Sydney. Bob uses two days of paid bereavement leave to attend the funeral. Six months later, Bob takes off another day of bereavement leave to attend a local memorial service.
- Rangi is entitled to three days’ paid bereavement leave when his grandmother dies. He takes two days immediately to attend her tangi. A year later, he takes the third day’s paid leave to attend the unveiling of his grandmother’s headstone.
- Joyce takes two days’ paid bereavement leave when her sister dies after a long illness. Over the next several weeks, she takes two more half days of paid leave to talk to the lawyer about settling the details of her sister’s will.
The Department of Labour can be contacted by calling us free on 0800 20 90 20 to provide information on managing bereavement leave.
