Domestic and Family Violence Leave
The family and domestic violence leave entitlement is changing from 5 days of unpaid leave to 10 days of paid leave. This will come into effect as of the 1st of February 2023 for businesses with 15 or more employees and the 1st of August 2023 for small businesses with less than 15 employees.
All employees will be able to access the 10 days of paid leave in a 12-month period, this will not be pro-rated for part-time and casual employees. The full 10-days leave entitlement is available upfront and it will not accumulate from year to year if it is not used.
Employees will continue to have access to the 5 days of unpaid family and domestic violence leave until the new paid leave entitlement becomes available to them.
Family and Domestic Violence Leave is an entitlement for those affected by any violent, threatening or abusive behaviour by a close relative that seeks to coerce/control the employee or cause them harm or fear.
A close relative is
• an employee’s:
– spouse or former spouse
– de facto partner or former de facto partner
– child
– parent
– grandparent
– sibling
• an employee’s current or former spouse or de facto partner’s child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling, or
• a person related to the employee according to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander kinship rules.
Employees can take the paid leave entitlement if they need to do something to deal with the impact of the family and domestic violence and it is not practical for them to do so during their work hours.
This includes, for example:
• making arrangements for their safety, or the safety of a close relative (including location);
• attending court hearings;
• accessing police services;
• attending counselling; or
• attending appointments with medical, financial and legal professionals.
Do you have questions?
If you would like to discuss this, or any other HR issue, please call (08) 9316 9896, or email enquiries@processworx.com.au.
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