On September 29, 2022, Gov. Newsom signed AB 1949 into law. The new law adds an entitlement to bereavement leave to the state’s existing California Family Rights Act (CFRA). Employers with five or more employees will be required to provide at least five days bereavement leave for employees experiencing the death of the following family members: spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, domestic partner or parent-in-law. Employees will be eligible after 30 days of employment. The leave must be taken within three months of the family member’s death.
The entitlement is separate from and in addition to CFRA’s existing 12-week entitlement. The question of whether the leave is paid or unpaid is dependent upon the employer’s existing bereavement leave policy. The leave may be paid or unpaid, but it should be consistent with the employer’s policy. For example, if the employer has an existing bereavement leave policy in which employees are paid for three days, the employee must receive paid bereavement up to the employer’s existing allowance (three days) and any remaining days out of the five (two days) may be unpaid.
The new law is effective January 1, 2024. Employers should work to revise their leave policies as necessary. The CFRA poster is expected to be revised.
AB 1949 »
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