Bereavement leave now reaches “chosen family”

Since 2023, California employers with five or more employees have had to give eligible employees up to five days of bereavement leave when a close family member dies. That list was fixed: spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, domestic partner, and parent-in-law. SB 1149 adds a designated person.

The change follows the path California has already taken with sick leave and family leave — and that SB 590 will take with Paid Family Leave in 2028 — of recognizing the people employees actually rely on, whether or not the relationship is a legal one.

What changed

An employee can take bereavement leave for the death of a designated person — any individual related to the employee by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. The employee may identify that person when requesting leave, and is limited to one designated person per 12-month period. The amount of leave is unchanged: up to five days, completed within three months of the death. It remains unpaid unless your policy provides pay, though employees may use accrued vacation, sick leave, or other paid time off. Your existing right to request documentation of the death still applies, and it must be kept confidential.

Who’s affected

California employers with five or more employees, and employees who have worked for them at least 30 days.

What to do now

Update your bereavement policy and handbook language before January 1, 2027. Add a simple way to record the designated person when leave is requested, and track the one-per-12-month limit. Brief managers so a request for a close friend or extended relative isn’t turned down by habit.

How The HR Meeting helps

We update your leave policies across California’s overlapping programs, draft request and documentation language that respects privacy, and give managers plain-language guidance so leave is handled consistently and kindly.