Bereavement Leave Requirements in New Jersey
At a glance
| Governing law and type of leave | No current standalone private-sector bereavement mandate. N.J.S.A. 34:11D-3 earned-sick-leave uses and N.J.S.A. 34:11B-3 Family Leave Act purposes do not include bereavement |
|---|---|
| Covered employers and employees | No current bereavement-specific coverage. Employer policy or agreement controls any separate benefit; coverage under another leave law matters only when the absence independently fits that law |
| Qualifying deaths, relationships, and events | No current statewide private-sector death, relationship, funeral, memorial, or reproductive-loss list. A qualifying employee health condition after a death is an earned-sick-leave basis, not bereavement leave |
| Leave amount, timing, and caps | No current bereavement-specific allotment, per-death amount, annual cap, consecutive-use rule, or completion window; employer policy controls |
| Paid or unpaid; use of existing leave | No required paid or unpaid bereavement allotment. Accrued paid sick leave may cover a qualifying mental or physical illness, injury, or adverse health condition after a loss, but not bereavement alone |
| Notice, documentation, and proof | No current bereavement-specific state notice, request-form, proof, or privacy rule; voluntary employer policy supplies the procedures, subject to other applicable law |
| Job protection, attendance, and confidentiality | No current bereavement-specific restoration, attendance, retaliation, or confidentiality right; separate earned-sick-leave or Family Leave Act protections require an independently covered purpose |
| Enforcement, remedies, and deadlines | No current general bereavement-specific claim or deadline. Policy, contract, collective bargaining, and independently qualifying leave rights use their own remedies |
What an employee and employer do under current law
New Jersey does not currently create a general block of funeral, memorial, bereavement, or reproductive-loss leave for ordinary private-sector employees. N.J.S.A. § 34:11D-3 lists the permitted uses of earned sick leave: employee and family health needs, domestic or sexual violence, specified public-health circumstances, and child-related school or care meetings. Death, funeral attendance, memorial arrangements, grief itself, and post-death tasks are not included.
The Family Leave Act also does not currently supply post-death leave. N.J.S.A. § 34:11B-3(i) identifies birth, foster-care or adoption placement, care for a family member with a serious health condition, and specified public-health emergencies. Its current purpose list does not include a family member's death or reproductive loss.
Any separate bereavement benefit therefore begins with the employer's handbook, collective bargaining agreement, or other policy. That document supplies the covered relationships and events, amount, pay, notice, proof, privacy, and attendance treatment.
A health condition after a loss is a different basis
Section 34:11D-3 permits accrued earned sick leave for an employee's mental or physical illness, injury, or other adverse health condition. A qualifying condition after a death can therefore support paid sick leave, but the protected reason is the health condition, not bereavement or funeral attendance.
Pending bills would change the answer
A2198 and S2046 propose the broader change. They would add protected Family Leave Act leave and family temporary disability benefits for a child's death, miscarriage, stillbirth, medically necessary pregnancy termination, a failed planned adoption, or unsuccessful fertility treatment. The proposal uses a 21-day post-event limit when no other leave or benefit applies and a seven-day limit when the person otherwise qualifies, without enlarging the existing overall leave or benefit maximums. A2198 was reported favorably by the Assembly Labor Committee; neither bill is current law.
A113 and S1869 are narrower alternatives focused on a child's death, miscarriage, and stillbirth. They also remain proposals rather than current rights.
What trips people up
Paid sick leave is not automatically bereavement leave. A death alone is not one of the current section 34:11D-3 uses. A resulting qualifying health condition is a different statutory basis.
Family leave generally concerns care before death. Current Family Leave Act categories do not continue as a general grief or funeral period after the family member dies.
Committee approval is not enactment. A2198 has advanced, but its proposed child-loss and reproductive-loss protections do not apply unless legislation is enacted and reaches its effective date.
Common questions
Can a New Jersey employee use earned sick leave to attend a funeral?
Not solely because it is a funeral. The current permitted-use list does not include funeral or memorial attendance. An employer's separate policy may allow the absence or permit another paid-leave bank to be used.
What if grief causes depression, anxiety, or another health condition?
Accrued earned sick leave may be used for a qualifying mental or physical illness, injury, or other adverse health condition. The health condition, rather than bereavement itself, is the protected reason.
Are the proposed 21 days available now?
No. The 21-day and seven-day limits are in pending A2198 and S2046. They are not current employee entitlements.
Statutes and sources
- N.J.S.A. § 34:11D-3. Current earned-sick-leave purpose list. Official enacted text and current NJDOL summary (accessed July 15, 2026).
- N.J.S.A. § 34:11B-3(i). Current Family Leave Act purposes. Official enacted text (accessed July 15, 2026).
- Pending proposals. A2198, S2046, A113, and S1869 (checked August 8, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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