As well as annual leave (holiday) and other types of leave like maternity/paternity leave, employees have the right to have time off to deal with emergencies involving someone who is a dependant.
This could be your husband, wife, partner, child or someone else in your home living there as a member of the family. Examples of requests for time off for dependants are:
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When you have been let down by your childcare arrangements
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To put longer term care in place for children or elderly relatives
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If a dependant fall ill or is taken into hospital
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To arrange or attend a funeral.
An employee is entitled to a reasonable amount of time off, although it is not stated how much is reasonable. However, a day or two is usually seen as a enough time to deal with an emergency, but it will depend on individual circumstances.
Although there is no legal right to be paid, check with your employer as they could agree for you to be paid for the time off, dependant on the terms and conditions of your contract.
Further information on Time Off for dependants
Direct GOV – Time off for dependants has more information on:
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What counts as an emergency
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How much time you are allowed to take off
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Information on when the right to take time off for dependants doesn’t apply.
