Right To Compassionate Leave: Duration, Implementation And Assessment 22 May 2025

Additional Article 2 of the Labour Law provides the following:
 

"Employees shall be granted paid leave for three days in the event of their marriage, adoption, or the death of their mother, father, spouse, sibling, or child; and five days in the event of the birth of their spouse's child. Employees shall also be granted paid leave of up to ten days within a year, either in one period or in instalments, for the treatment of their child who is at least seventy percent disabled or has a chronic illness, provided that the leave is based on a medical report and is used by only one of the working parents."
 

Types and Duration of Compassionate Leave under Labour Law:
 

Pursuant to Additional Article 2, the durations of compassionate leave are as follows:
 

• In case of marriage or adoption: 3 days
• In case of death of mother, father, spouse, sibling, or child: 3 days
• In case of spouse's childbirth: 5 days
• For the treatment of a child with at least 70% disability or a chronic illness, based on a medical report and to be used by only one of the working parents: up to 10 days annually

The provision explicitly states that these leaves are paid; however, it does not clarify whether the stated durations are calendar days or working days. Given that other provisions of the Labour Law specify "working days" where intended, and such a clarification is absent in Additional Article 2, it must be concluded that the leave durations should be calculated in calendar days. For instance, if a three-day bereavement leave begins on a Friday, it would end on Sunday, and the employee would be expected to return to work on Monday.

The durations stipulated by law represent minimum entitlements. It is possible for individual employment contracts, collective bargaining agreements, or internal workplace regulations to grant longer durations of leave in favour of the employee. Such extensions do not contravene the law and are considered valid as employee-favourable arrangements.

In this context, many workplaces today grant additional types of leave beyond the statutory grounds of marriage, birth, or death. These include, for example, birthday leave, moving leave, report card leave for parents, or volunteering leave, among others. These additional leaves are generally regulated by company policy, human resources practices, or collective agreements, and are implemented at the employer's discretion.

Use of Compassionate Leave:
 

Compassionate leave is a right that arises in connection with specific events and, as a rule, must be used at the time the event occurs. Therefore, the date of childbirth in the case of paternity leave or the date of death in the case of bereavement leave shall be considered the start of the leave period.
 

The 9th Civil Chamber of the Turkish Court of Cassation ruled as follows (E. 2014/30441, K. 2016/5377, Decision Date: 09.03.2016):
 

"The plaintiff's claim for wages during marital leave is a form of compassionate leave under Article 55/ı of the Labour Law No. 4857. Compassionate leave, as a rule, must be used when the right arises. If not used, it does not convert into a monetary compensation like annual paid leave."

However, it should be noted that in certain cases, circumstances may prevent or make it impossible to exercise the right to leave at the time it arises. In such cases, a case-specific assessment should be made in accordance with the principle of good faith.

Effect of Compassionate Leave on Seniority:
 

According to Article 46/III-(b) of the Labour Law, the periods of leave set out in Additional Article 2 are deemed as days worked for the purpose of entitlement to weekly rest. While the employment contract is considered suspended during these periods, seniority continues to accrue. Therefore, the periods of compassionate leave must be considered when calculating:
 

• The employee's length of service for severance pay entitlement,
• The six-month qualifying period for job security protection,
• The accrual and duration of annual paid leave.

Article 55/ı of the Labour Law explicitly states that the leave periods under Additional Article 2 shall be regarded as time worked for annual leave entitlement.

Compassionate Leave for Public Servants:
 

Pursuant to Article 104 of the Civil Servants Law No. 657, public servants are entitled to various types of compassionate leave. However, the duration and scope of these leaves may differ from those granted to employees governed by labour law.
 

Comparison of Compassionate Leave Durations for Employees and Public Servants: