What does The Carers Leave Act 2023 mean for unpaid carers in the workplace?

The new law will give carers more rights and flexibility in the workplace. More than one in seven people in employment are carers, so this is a much-needed update to the law and protections for unpaid carers. The key terms to take away from this are ‘flexibility’ and ‘protected’.

The Carers Leave Act 2023 will give a new and flexible leave entitlement for employees providing or arranging unpaid care for a relative or dependant with a ‘long-term care need’. This can be defined as an illness or injury (physical or mental) that does or is expected to require more than three months of care, a disability as defined under the Equality Act 2010, as well as issues related to old age. 

Carers will receive one week of unpaid leave per year, allowing them to be more flexible with their caring role; to arrange and take part in planned and foreseen caring commitments. This will be a boon to working carers and will save them precious annual leave, which is the most common leave entitlement used to assist their caring roles.

It will also be protected the same way that other methods of leave are protected, i.e., family related leave, meaning that carers will be protected from dismissal or any other kind of workplace detriment because they have taken time off. This be available from the first day of employment and will not need to be earned like annual leave. It is a right.

How taking Carer’s Leave will be arranged with your employer is still an ongoing process as the regulations await publishing. Due to this, it is expected that the new rights will be enforced after April 2024.

If you are an employee benefitting from The Carers Leave Act 2023 then sit tight for now, as these things can take time to be fully fleshed out. If you do want updates, information, or advice then you can contact Carers Trust. You are probably already in contact with your local Carers Trust, and they will be filtering information to you as news comes in. If you would like to know more then get in touch with your local branch, you can find yours on the Carers Trust homepage here. You can also contact CarersUK for information.

If you are an employer and wish to know more on how to better update your policies to be in accordance with The Carers Leave Act 2023, CarersUK offer support and guidance to make sure you are ready.