FAMILY RESPONSIBILITY AND ILLNESS OF NON-DEPENDENT CHILDREN

[Ivan Israelstam]

DOES FAMILY RESPONSIBILITY LEAVE COVER ILLNESS OF NON-DEPENDENT CHILDREN?
Section 27(2)(b) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) entitles employees to family responsibility leave if their child is ill. The BCEA does not limit this to the illness of dependent children. A literal interpretation of this section obligates the employer to grant this leave even if the ill child is a fully grown adult who may not need any help from the parent employee applying for the leave. Is an employer entitled to refuse family responsibility leave to an employee whose adult child is ill on the grounds that the child is able to care for himself/herself and is able to get to the doctor without assistance from the parent employee?

[Michael Bagraim]

I confirm that the definition of child is a person that is under 18 years of age and it is certainly not dependent on whether the child can fend for themselves or not.

Michael Bagraim

[Author]

Posts