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opinion: giving canadians more time to grieve isn't a partisan issue
bill c-220 proposes to extend bereavement leave to 10 days, up from the current five days
may 16 2021
2 minute read
jessica littlewood helps lay roses, one for every albertan lost to covid-19, outside the federal building (violet king henry plaza), in edmonton thursday march 11, 2021. community groups gathered at the alberta legislature grounds thursday as part of the national day of observance for the nearly 2,000 albertans who have lost their lives to the covid-19 pandemic. 810 of those deaths were here in edmonton.
david bloom
/
postmedia
by: matt jeneroux and paula simons
history is about to be made in the parliament of canada: an independent senator will sponsor a private member’s bill passed in the house of commons, under the stewardship of a conservative member of parliament.
typically, bills sponsored by private members would remain under party tutelage in both the lower and upper chambers. we felt, however, that ensuring canadians receive compassionate support in a time of grief was more important than sticking to tradition.
bill c-220 proposes to extend bereavement leave to 10 days, up from the current five days, for all employees covered under the canada labour code. the bill was first introduced by alberta member of parliament matt jeneroux in february 2020, as a proposal to extend bereavement leave for canadians who use the compassionate care leave benefit, which gives some canadian workers the ability to take a leave of up to 26 weeks from work to care for a terminally ill loved one. the leave ends within days of that loved one’s death.
the bill has changed over the past year and a bit. jeneroux worked closely with the liberal party on the bill and submitted joint amendments — another rare occurrence in canadian politics — to the committee studying the bill after its second reading. the new changes to extend bereavement leave to 10 days for employees after a family member’s death will ultimately affect more canadians, including those who use the compassionate care leave benefit.
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jeneroux asked alberta senator paula simons to shepherd his bill through the senate, in keeping with the non-partisan nature of the bill, which passed its third reading unanimously in the house of commons on may 12.
we’re both edmonton parliamentarians, working to ensure canadians live in the best country possible. working together on this bill is a natural fit, especially after the events of the past 14 months. more people want to see parliamentarians working together, regardless of political stripe, to help canadians.
the covid-19 pandemic highlights the importance of bereavement time for canadian families. it’s extremely difficult to return to work within a few days of a loved one’s death, especially if one is responsible for taking care of practical necessities, like planning a funeral and managing an estate. we heard from people across the country that the current five days of bereavement leave is not enough.
our aim with this bill is to be as straightforward, sensible and sensitive as possible. if it receives royal assent, it will come into effect three months after the date on which it passes into law, giving employers sufficient time to adjust their workplace policies and work with unions to modify collective agreements to align with the changes. our research has shown that this extra time off will have little impact on a company’s bottom line, but will make a tremendous difference to a grieving employee.
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unfortunately, we will all experience loss in our lives, and we want to use our position as parliamentarians to ensure supports are in place for when that happens.
bereavement is not a partisan issue. we felt that should be reflected in this bill.
matt jeneroux is member of parliament for edmonton riverbend.
paula simons is independent senator for alberta.
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