New Paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
The Australian Government enacted the Paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave in late November to replace the existing entitlement in the National Employment Standards. All employees will have access to 10 paid days of Family and Domestic Violence (FDV) leave per year starting in 2023.
What is Family and Domestic Violence?
Family and domestic violence is any violent, threatening, or other abusive behaviour by a close relative, a current or former intimate partner, or a household member that both aims to force or control the employee and puts them in danger.
A close relative is:
an employee's
o spouse or former spouse
o de facto partner or former de facto partner
o child
o parent
o grandparent
o grandchild
o sibling
a child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling of an employee’s current or former spouse or de facto partner, or
a person related to the employee according to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander kinship rules.
What are the key changes and what do they mean for both employees and employers?
1. Full-time, part-time and casual employees will be able to access 10 days of paid family and domestic violence leave in a 12-month period. It won’t be pro-rated for part-time or casual employees.
For small businesses (employers with less than 15 employees) this leave will become effective from 1 August 2023, for non-small business employers, the new provisions will come into effect on 1 February 2023. Up until these dates, employees will continue to be entitled to five days of unpaid family and domestic violence leave.
2. Family and domestic violence (FDV) leave renews every year on each employee’s work anniversary and does not accumulate from year to year if it is not used.
This leave can be taken if the employee needs to do something to deal with the impact of FDV and it’s not practical for them to do so during their work hours.
For example, this could include the employee:
making arrangements for their safety, or the safety of a close relative (including relocation).
attending court hearings.
accessing police services.
attending counselling.
attending appointments with medical, financial or legal professionals.
3. An employee can use paid family and domestic violence leave during a period of personal or annual leave.
If this happens, the employee is no longer on the other form of paid leave and is taking paid family and domestic violence leave instead. The employee is still required to give their employer the required notice and evidence to take the leave. An employer may ask their employee for evidence to show that the employee needs to do something to deal with FDV and it is not practical to do so outside their hours of work. This evidence, like for other types of leave, has to convince a reasonable person that the employee took leave to deal with the impact of FDV. Types of evidence can include:
documents issued by the police service
documents issued by a court
family violence support service documents, or
a statutory declaration.
4. Employers must take reasonable steps to keep any information about an employee’s situation confidential when they receive it as part of an application for leave.
This includes information about the employee giving notice that they’re taking the leave and any evidence they provide. Employers need to also be aware that any information about an employee’s experience of FDV is sensitive. If information is mishandled, it could have adverse consequences for their employee. Employers should also work with their employees experiencing this to discuss and agree on how this information will be handled.