Compassionate Care Leave Now Applies To Alberta

On February 1, 2014, the Compassionate Care Leave amendments to the Alberta Employment Standards Code come into effect. The amendments allow an employee to take unpaid job-protected leave of up to eight weeks to care for a seriously ill family member. As a prerequisite of leave, the employee must have completed at least 52 consecutive weeks of employment with the employer. While on compassionate care leave, the employee is entitled to receive Employment Insurance.

The meaning of "family member" is broadly defined by the amendments and includes (but is not limited to):

• a spouse or partner of the employee;
• the adult interdependent partner of the employee;
• a child of the employee or a child of the employee's spouse or partner;