Workers in both private and public sectors may soon be granted a 10-day bereavement leave with full pay if the proposed House Bill No. 2345, or the "Bereavement Act of 2022," becomes law.

Authored by Tingog Party-list Reps. Yedda Marie Romualdez and Jude Acidre, the proposed measure allows employees to mourn the death of their family members without losing their income.

"Currently, employees are entitled to the following statutory leaves: service incentive leave; maternity leave or paternity leave, whichever is applicable; parental leave for solo parents; special leave for women, and leave under the Violence Against Women Act. However, no mandatory leaves are granted to employees who have recently lost a family member," they said in their bill's explanatory note.

The lawmakers added the bereavement leave "shall allow the employee to take a leave from work to grieve and recover from the loss without sacrificing his/her income."

Section 3 of the proposed "Bereavement Act of 2022" defines bereavement leave as a leave taken by an employee to grieve the death, or to attend or plan for the funeral, of an immediate family member such as an employee's spouse, parent, child, brother, or sister, and relatives within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity.

If enacted into law, the proposed measure sets the fine for violators to P20,000 or imprisonment of 15 days to one month.

According to the bill, if the violator is a corporation, trust or firm, partnership, association, or any other entity, the penalty of imprisonment shall be imposed on the entity's responsible officers, including but not limited to the president, vice president, chief executive officer general manager, managing director, or partner directly responsible, therefore.

HB 2345 provides that "existing benefits granted under existing laws, decrees executive orders, or any contract, agreement, or policy between the employer and employee" shall not be reduced, and employees who will avail of the bereavement leave "shall be assured of security of tenure."

The bill also stressed that the availment of the leave shall not be used as a reason for misconduct, demotion, termination of employment, or any form of unsatisfactory performance.

"Section 18, Article Il of the 1987 Philippine Constitution mandates the State to protect workers' rights and promote their welfare. It affirms the duty of the State to provide full protection to and promote the rights of the laborers, which includes their right to paid days off to improve their well-being and efficiency," the lawmakers said.