New House bill on bereavement leave filed

By Charmaine A. Tadalan Reporter
A BILL GRANTING employees a bereavement leave of 12 days with full pay has been filed at the House of Representatives.
House Bill 8363, authored by Rep. John Marvin C. Nieto of the 3rd district of Manila, seeks to grant the benefit to employees both in the public and private sectors, which no law currently covers.
“The loss of an immediate family member bears a significant emotional and psychological burden upon family members left,” Mr. Nieto said in the explanatory note.
The Bereavement Law Act of 2018, as proposed, will apply the benefit in the death of an immediate family, which may be the worker’s spouse, parent, child, sibling and relatives within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity.
The proposed measure will also penalize offenders who do not allow this benefit with a fine of up to P30,000 or imprisonment of 15 days to 1 month.
Further, it provided that if the violation was committed by a corporation, trust, firm or partnership, the penalty will be imposed on the responsible officer, such as the president, vice president, and chief executive officer, among others.
Bulacan 1st district Rep. Jose Antonio R. Sy-Alvarado has proposed to grant a 12-day bereavement leave in a separate bill, HB 8243.
There are five other Bereavement Leave bills pending in the chamber, three of which propose a 10-day leave while the others seek to grant five.
Its counterpart measure, Senate Bill 1026, meanwhile, proposes a 10-day bereavement leave with full pay, and imposes a P20,000 fine or imprisonment of 15 days to one month.
The bill, authored by Senator Grace Poe-Llamanzares, also remains pending at the committee level.