How long is acceptable to be off work

[shortsout]

After losing a grandparent?

I’m sure he won’t lose his job but they’d maybe check in if he’s ok and then perhaps gently explain (if this is the policy which he really needs to check before the meeting) that he had to retrospectively book AL. Unless they have a policy allowing for leave for this.

Or they might want to find out how it’s affecting him to decide if it’s AL or something like stress?

All depends on their policy really!

Where I work, funeral day only (at managers discretion) unless it’s an immediate family member. Have to say the managers are fab and often allow people more.

I'd be wondering something like this too. I don't think 2 days as unreasonable OP.

He works full time but it still comes under a zero hour contract even though it’s long term, he’s been there about 7 years now - days are 8am until the jobs are finished which is usually at least 10 hours and hourly paid so he will just have expected not to be paid for that time.
He has to get holiday approved but he let them know he’d be off as you would if you were off sick.

Did he tell work that his grandad passed away?

A day for the funeral

In the immediate dates after I think some flexibility around face to face or difficult meetings is appropriate but I wouldn’t expect an adult to be off work for a grandparent unless they had been raised by them.

My nanna died last year - I was 32, it was hardly a surprise that a 90 year old woman died. I took a day for the funeral and missed one meeting that a colleague covered the day after as I needed to be on top form and knew I wouldn’t be.

Honestly i don’t know with zero hour contracts. Is he able to look at their company policy? Surely any kind of bereavement leave will be detailed in there.

At the companies i have worked for, if you are off for any reason, your manager should hold a ‘return to work’ meeting with you to make sure you are ok basically.

I took a day off 2 weeks into a new role while i was still on probation, after the unexpected suicide of one of my closest friends. I actually tried to go into work in the morning and they were happy to send me home as i was crying. This was a friday I was then fine to he back at work on a monday. They also let me have the day as annual leave to attend the funeral.

I had 3 days for the funeraI I think when my grandma died. I was in a public sector job and it wasn’t really under their policy but managers were able to use some discretion. I needed to travel and it wasn’t really doable in less time. That was nearly 20 years ago now. My current employer is private sector and includes grandparents in their ‘immediate family’ definition so you’d get up to 5 days of paid leave, and a day for the funeral. There is still loads of room for discretion. The manager may just want to go over the policy with him. If they are generally a ‘nice’ organisation it might be ok.

I took one day for the funeral but where I work now would be allowed 3 days.

Our policy is that you can take up to three days for a parent/sibling/adult child or grandparent (separate rules apply for children under 18) . This will be updated when the new employment rights act comes in. I think it is going to increase to a statutory right to 1 week unpaid (but we will still pay 3 days)

Friday/Monday does not seem unreasonable @shortsout

I wouldn't be overly concerned if he is a "decent" boss in other respects.

He did, I wasn’t there for the call so I didn’t hear what was said but he’s never been asked for a scheduled meeting with his boss before so a bit panicked.

It could just be a standard return to work interview

Whether he needs to be concerned depends mainly on what his attendance record is like generally and how much he's trusted and valued. This is a subjective matter, not set out in law, so if there's nothing in his contract, its up to his employers to allow what they see fit.
If he is a good attender and performer, they are far more likely to be fine with it than if it's his 5th 'close bereavement' in a year and/or he regular has time off for minor illness, family emergencies etc.
It's possible they may say he has to have the days sick or unpaid leave if they don't allow compassionate leave for GPs. But unless this looks like a 'last straw' situation after repeated absence, would be unlikely to threaten his job.

Friday fair enough but taking the Monday off too seems excessive. I took one afternoon off when my very elderly GM died suddenly.

Taking the Monday off as well after having three days already seems a bit much tbh. Presumably he will also want at least one more day for the funeral.

No one here can say, we don't know anything about his employer or employment history. Reasonableness doesntbcome into it, it's going to be up to the employers policies and whether he complied with whatever the procedures are for taking time off

A very long term zero hours contract as you describe is quite unusual isn't it, is his employer known for having good employee relations I wonder

Three DAYS for a sibling or your 21 year old son who died tragically in a car accident. That’s awful! I would expect someone to have at least a fortnight off for a sibling and probably a month for a child regardless of age.

Very much depends on your employer. I was at work when I got the call to say one of mine had died. I stayed at work but I suspect my boss would have allowed me to leave that day but I wouldn't been allowed to take the following day off. It was assumed I would work on the afternoon of the funeral. (Private sector, professional services).

My employer was brilliant when my mum was dying. They basically said see you when we see you. I spent 5 days at the hospital (I didn’t go home and stayed with her because I didn’t want her to feel alone at any point) and after she passed at a weekend I went in work on the Monday. My employer told me to go home but at that point, I just wanted to do something normal to give me something else to think about, but my employer didn’t expect me to be in. I think in circumstances like my own, I needed the compassionate leave before my mum passed as opposed to after it. I’ll be forever grateful that my employer had the same stance as I got to spend those last few days by her side.

I think it's one of those things that really depends - I got the call about my granddad at work on a Friday lunchtime (it was expected) and my manager told me to go home, I would have gone back on the Monday but had a/l already booked in. I then had a day off (compassionate leave) for the funeral a couple of weeks later. But I have a friend who was practically raised by her grandparents and would have needed more time.

I don't think the time your DH has taken unreasonable, but if it were a member off my team I'd want to chat to them on their return to to see how they are.

Unless there are additional factors such as caring for someone left behind then taking Monday as well was excessive.

Many jobs have return to work meetings for any absence, even for a day.

This. TBH I’ve never heard of such leave for a GP, unless it’s one day for attending the funeral.

3 days compassionate leave, and a day for the funeral (NHS)....
However I know people who have taken more than this
I took a two weeks and a half for my dads death (5 days compassionate leave and 8 days sick leave- but that's because parents live hours away and I was with my mum for the first week- and then dealing with emotional children)...
However my boss took 4 months for her parent, and 2 for her grandparent....

it still depends....what is the company policy on leave for bereavement? Did he just not turn up or did he negotiate? Is he describing it as sick leave?