What Is Compassionate Leave Used For in Australia?

When someone on your team experiences a loss or a serious family health crisis, you want to be supportive and compliant. That’s where compassionate leave (also called bereavement leave) comes in.

As an employer in Australia, understanding exactly what compassionate leave is used for, who’s eligible and how to manage it fairly can help you balance empathy with your legal obligations under the National Employment Standards (NES).

Below, we break down the essentials in plain English, including eligibility, evidence, pay, rostering and how compassionate leave interacts with other types of leave.

What Is Compassionate Leave And When Is It Used?

Compassionate leave is designed to give an employee time away from work when a close family or household member dies, or develops a life‑threatening illness or injury. It also applies if the employee or their spouse or de facto partner has a miscarriage or stillbirth.

Situations That Usually Qualify

• Death of an immediate family or household member.
• Life‑threatening illness or injury of an immediate family or household member (for example, time to visit them in hospital or make care arrangements).
• Miscarriage or stillbirth involving the employee or their spouse/de facto partner.

Who Counts As “Immediate Family”?

Under the NES, immediate family commonly includes a spouse or de facto partner, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling of the employee; it also includes the same relatives of the employee’s spouse or de facto partner. A household member (someone who lives with the employee) is also covered.

Many awards and enterprise agreements reflect the NES definition, but always check the specific instrument covering your workplace in case it provides more generous entitlements.

How Much Leave And Who Is Eligible?

Compassionate leave is available to all employees in Australia, but the type of entitlement differs between permanent and casual staff.

Standard Entitlement

• Two days per occasion: Employees can take two days of compassionate leave for each permissible occasion.
• Flexibility in how it’s taken: The two days can be taken in a single block, two separate days, or as part‑days by agreement.
• Timing: Leave should start as soon as practicable, which can be after the event if the employee needs to arrange travel, funerals or care.

Eligibility By Employment Type

• Full‑time and part‑time employees: Paid compassionate leave at their base rate for the ordinary hours they would have worked.
• Casual employees: Unpaid compassionate leave (other entitlements, like paid family and domestic violence leave, are separate and should not be confused with compassionate leave).

If your team members have different entitlements under an award or enterprise agreement (some provide additional days or broader scope), you must apply the most beneficial terms.

Evidence, Notice And Handling Sensitive Information

Employers can ask for reasonable evidence that an employee’s request for compassionate leave is genuine. At the same time, you should handle all information with care and respect.

What Evidence Can You Request?

“Reasonable evidence” depends on the situation. Common examples include a death or funeral notice, a medical certificate confirming a life‑threatening illness/injury, or other documentation appropriate to the circumstances. If you need to request medical information, make sure your managers know when they can ask for medical certificates and what details are actually necessary.

Notice Requirements

Employees must let you know as soon as practicable that they’re taking compassionate leave, including the expected length of the absence. In many cases this will be on the same day the leave starts, but sometimes notice may come shortly after due to the circumstances.

Privacy And Sensitivity

Keep evidence requests proportionate and respectful. Limit collection and sharing of personal information to what’s necessary to administer the leave and payroll. If you publish internal protocols, ensure they align with your Staff Handbook and any privacy commitments you’ve made to employees.

Pay, Rostering And Record-Keeping For Employers

Getting the payroll and rostering side right helps you care for your team while keeping operations on track.

Paying Compassionate Leave

• Base rate of pay: Pay full‑time and part‑time employees their base rate for ordinary hours they would have worked during the leave period.
• Penalty rates and loadings: Generally, compassionate leave is paid at the base rate only (not including overtime, penalties or allowances), unless an applicable instrument says otherwise.
• Casuals: Unpaid compassionate leave, but keep your system consistent so balances and records reflect the time taken.

Rostering And Coverage

Expect short notice in many cases. Build some flexibility into rosters and cross‑training so you can cover key roles at short notice. If your business uses rotating rosters or minimum notice windows for shifts, ensure these practices are consistent with employee rostering obligations under modern awards and the Fair Work Act.

Record-Keeping

• Keep accurate leave records (dates, duration and pay treatment) for compliance.
• Store any evidence securely and restrict access to those who need it for administering the leave.
• If your employee is working a notice period, remember that leave during notice periods is allowed, and you should apply the same rules and pay treatment.

How Compassionate Leave Interacts With Other Leave Types

Compassionate leave is separate to other leave entitlements. Understanding how these interact helps you approve requests confidently and avoid payroll errors.

Personal/Carer’s Leave (Sick Leave)

This covers an employee’s own illness/injury, or caring responsibilities for a family or household member who’s ill or affected by an unexpected emergency. Where the family member’s condition is life‑threatening, the employee might be eligible for compassionate leave instead of (or as well as) personal/carer’s leave, depending on the circumstances. If personal/carer’s leave balances are exhausted, you can consider unpaid leave by agreement.

If your managers often field complex questions about sick leave thresholds, it’s worth reviewing your processes around managing sick leave when entitlements run out to ensure decisions are consistent and fair.

Annual Leave

Employees can request annual leave for additional time off around a bereavement or to travel, particularly if the two days of compassionate leave isn’t enough. Treat annual leave requests according to your usual policy and operational needs (approval should be reasonable).

Family And Domestic Violence Leave

This is a separate entitlement with different rules and evidence requirements. Ensure your policies and team training clearly distinguish between family and domestic violence leave and compassionate leave so employees are supported in the right way and their information is protected appropriately.

Notice Periods And End Of Employment

If employment is ending, compassionate leave can still be taken if an eligible occasion arises during the notice period. Keep an eye on any award or agreement rules around employment notice periods to ensure you apply the correct treatment for pay and leave accruals.

Best Practice For Employers: Policies, Contracts And Training

Clear, empathetic processes help your managers respond quickly and consistently, which supports staff wellbeing and reduces legal risk.

Document The Rules In Plain English

• Employment agreements: Set expectations about leave entitlements and evidence requirements in each Employment Contract (and ensure casual contracts reference the correct unpaid entitlements).
• Workplace policies: Publish a short, readable Workplace Policy on compassionate leave that mirrors the NES and any applicable award. Include who to contact, how to request leave quickly and what evidence may be required.
• Staff resources: Keep procedures and support contacts in your Staff Handbook so employees and managers can find help fast.

Train Managers To Respond With Care

• Empathy first: Provide scripts or guidance for sensitive conversations so managers can respond with care while gathering essential details.
• Ask only for what’s needed: Reinforce the “reasonable evidence” standard and ensure privacy practices are followed.
• Keep decisions consistent: Use a short checklist to guide approvals, pay treatment, rostering updates and record‑keeping.

Build Operational Resilience

• Cross‑train critical roles so you can cover sudden absences.
• Map out backup arrangements during peak periods (e.g. assign a relief roster or on‑call casuals).
• Coordinate with payroll early so base‑rate pay is applied correctly and on time.

Key Takeaways

• Compassionate leave lets employees take time off for a death, a life‑threatening illness or injury of a close family/household member, or a miscarriage/stillbirth involving the employee or their spouse/de facto partner.
• Full‑time and part‑time employees get two paid days per occasion; casuals get two unpaid days. The leave can be taken in one block, on separate days or as part‑days by agreement.
• You can request reasonable evidence and require notice as soon as practicable, but handle all information sensitively and limit what you collect.
• Pay permanent employees at their base rate for ordinary hours; keep rosters flexible and maintain accurate records to stay compliant.
• Compassionate leave is separate from personal/carer’s, annual and family and domestic violence leave. Consider additional annual or unpaid leave where appropriate.
• Clear documents and training help: align your Workplace Policy, Staff Handbook and each Employment Contract so managers can act quickly and consistently.

If you’d like a consultation on setting up or reviewing your compassionate leave processes and documents, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no‑obligations chat.