Compassionate Care Leave – EI changes and what it means to employers

The Compassionate Care Benefit is designed to provide temporary support to eligible individuals who must be away from work to care for a gravely ill family member at risk of death.

Effective January 3, 2016, changes to the Employment Insurance (EI) Compassionate Care benefit program came into effect. Prior to January 3, 2016 a claimant was able to collect 6 weeks of benefits during a 26 week period.  The new benefit will allow the individual to collect up to 26 weeks of benefits during a 52 week span.  While the changes will not be retroactive, there will be transitional provisions for individuals that are currently on claim.

To be eligible for compassionate care benefits, the claimant is required to submit a medical certificate signed by the ill person’s doctor attesting to the family member’s condition. The certificate would need to indicate that the family member has a serious condition and is at significant risk of death within 26 weeks.  For additional information and documents required please refer to the Service Canada website:

http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/ei/types/compassionate_care.shtml

Corresponding changes to the Canada Labour Code have also come into force to ensure employees of federally regulated companies remain protected while they are taking compassionate care leave. At this point provincial and territorial employment standards legislation has not been impacted.  In BC, Alberta, NWT and Nunavut, compassionate care leave remains limited to 8 weeks.  In BC an employee may take up to eight weeks during a 26 week period.  The eight weeks does not need to be continuous during this time but must be taken in units of at least one week (starting on a Sunday).  Unless you have agreed with your employees i.e. through collective bargaining or policy to provide a greater amount of leave, this is your only legal obligation.

An employee who is on compassionate care leave is considered to be continuously employed for the purpose of calculating annual vacation and termination entitlements, as well as for pensions, medical or other plans of benefit to the employee.

An employer must continue to make payments to any such plans, unless the employee chooses not to continue with his or her share of the cost of a plan. The employee is also entitled to all increases in wages and benefits that the employee would have received if the leave had not been taken.

For further information, please contact your ENCOMPASS Consultant or Service Representative.

Sources: Employment and Social Development Canada

BC Employment Standards Factsheet – Compassionate Care Leave

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