In accordance with Article R II 4.27 of the Staff Rules and Regulations, members of the personnel (employed and associated) are entitled to up to seven calendar days of remunerated leave per year (from 1 October to 30 September) if one of their close relatives is suffering from a serious illness and the need for them to be with the relative concerned is substantiated by a medical certificate. Single parents are entitled to five additional days of such leave per year to care for a dependent child with a serious illness.

Close relatives are defined as the spouses/partners, children, parents, siblings, parents-in-law and step-parents of members of the personnel.

In view of the scarcity of available appointments with healthcare professionals and to avoid exacerbating the situation, the Organization has decided that, from 1 July, a medical certificate will be required only in the case of requests for more than three consecutive days of leave in the event of the serious illness of a close relative. For requests of a shorter duration, a declaration by the member of the personnel will suffice. The declaration must be sent to the departmental or group secretariat, who will register the absence in the EDH absence management system.

The HR department wishes to underline that accompanying a close relative to a medical appointment does not entitle the member of the personnel to leave in the event of the serious illness of a close relative. Please note also that this kind of leave does not cover the time spent travelling to reach the close relative concerned or a medical establishment.

Further information can be found in the “Leave for family reasons” procedure: https://admin-eguide.web.cern.ch/en/procedure/leave-family-reasons

Questions about the procedure should be addressed, in the first instance, to your departmental secretariat.

Leave service
HR.leave@cern.ch