what is jack's law?

Under ‘Jack’s Law’, parents who suffer the loss of a child aged under 18 will be entitled to two weeks' statutory paid leave from April.

As the law currently stands, there is no automatic right to paid time off for bereavement.

• Anyone classed as an employee has the right to time off for a "dependant"
• This time off is for dealing with unexpected issues and emergencies involving the dependant, including leave to arrange or attend a funeral
• The law does not say how much time off can be taken. It simply says the amount should be "reasonable"
• Employers can treat time off for bereavement as sick leave or holiday leave, depending on their workplace policy and the individual circumstances
• If the employee takes the time off as sick leave or holiday leave, their normal sick or holiday pay will apply.

From April 2020, The Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay Regulations, also known as ‘Jack’s Law’ will come into effect. The welcomed change in legislation, in memory of Jack Herd whose mother Lucy campaigned for since 2010 following the tragic death of Jack Herd, will entitle working parents to a minimum of two weeks’ statutory leave if they lose a child under the age of 18, or suffer a stillbirth from 24 weeks of pregnancy, irrespective of how long they have worked for their employer.

If you have a stillbirth, or if your baby is born alive but later dies, even after a few seconds (and even if this takes place before the 24th week of pregnancy), you are entitled to all your maternity rights. If you are already on maternity leave you do not have to take any action, but if the birth happens before you intended to start maternity leave, or before you gave notice of maternity leave to your employer, your maternity leave will start the day after the birth and you will need to inform your employer as soon as you can. (workingfamilies.org.uk)

Statistics from Child Bereavement UK illustrate the scale of parents that will be entitled to statutory leave under the new law:

• 3,200 babies were stillborn – that’s around nine babies every day
• 6,608 babies and children under five died – that’s more than 18 every day
• 869 school aged children (5-16 year-olds) died
• 7,653 babies, children and young people (under the age of 18) died – that’s 21 every day

Randstad supports child bereavement charity, CBUK, to support families who have suffered the tragic loss of a child. If you are affected by any of the topics covered in this article, or require financial or emotional advice, please visit https://www.childbereavementuk.org/