Newborn daughter's death inspires MP's bill on bereavement leave for parents
For Conservative MP Tom Kmiec, his bill to give parents more time off after the death of a child is personal.
Three years ago, Kmiec lost his newborn daughter Lucy-Rose after 39 days, and was flooded with stories of parents who had lost children, including from one of his neighbours in Calgary.
Some had to return to work after only a day or two off, he says, noting that's not enough time for some grieving parents.
Federal labour rules provide five days of job-protected bereavement leave, with three of those days paid, the other two unpaid.
Kmiec wants that expanded to at least eight weeks as part of a bill he recently introduced in the House of Commons, although he says he's open to shaving that in half if it means addressing what he sees as a hole in the social safety net.
The number of people who would be impacted would be small: Statistics Canada data show that in 2019 there were 3,191 stillbirths and 1,634 deaths of children under age one, the latter figure being more than two-and-a-half times the combined number of deaths for children one to 14 years old.
The numbers, he says, don't tell the full story of the impact the additional leave may have.
"It's really the unnatural order of things to lose a child. That's where it really has a big impact on people," Kmiec said in an interview, his children in the background doing virtual schooling.
"Hopefully we'll recognize that a person is more than the amount of labour that they produce in a day, that they're human beings that should be looked after just the same way we look after machines."
The proposed tweak to the Canada Labour Code would only apply to the federally regulated workforce, a body of just under one million that make up about six per cent of the national labour force, working at banks, telecommunication companies, Crown corporations, and airlines, among other firms.
Often, changes to the federal labour code become replicated in provincial labour rules.
Kmiec's bill would provide the extended leave to parents who have experienced a stillbirth, the death of a child under age 18 or the death of a child with disabilities being cared for by parents, which would include adult children with disabilities.
"Anyone who's ever been a parent certainly understands that agony, the grief that someone would go through, and I think they're hard pressed to find anyone who doesn't understand that there probably is some sort of need," said Conservative MP Blake Richards, whose motion three years ago launched a parliamentary study of the issue.
The 2018 committee report recommended the government look at creating up to 104 weeks of job-protected leave, and extend EI benefits for 12 to 15 weeks rather than immediately cutting off parental leave payments after the death of a newborn.
The bill is a long shot to get through the legislative process before the summer recess, and the possibility of an election this fall. If there's an election, Kmiec said he hopes his proposal lands in campaign platforms, be it his own party's or another.
"I don't have a trademark or copyright on these ideas," he said. "Good ideas should be introduced by whatever government of the day it is."
A similar bill to expand bereavement leave without pay under the federal labour code is sitting in the Senate within sight of the legislative finish line after getting cross-party backing in the House of Commons.
That bill from Conservative MP Matt Jeneroux would add five additional days to the labour code's leave for immediate family members that would need to be taken within six weeks of any funeral, burial or memorial service.
His bill would also cover parents, Jeneroux told senators this week, though not cover miscarriages as New Zealand did in March, becoming the first country to do so.
Jeneroux argued not providing extra leave could be even more costly to employers than the nominal costs linked to backfilling the absence.
"If they're not feeling supported by their employer, then (individuals) will leave their employers and that's a much, much larger impact on the employer than if they were to simply allow the initial leave," Jeneroux told a Senate committee scrutinizing his bill.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 11, 2021.
IN DEPTH
Blair and Lucki offer new details, deny interference in RCMP N.S. mass shooting investigation
Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair and RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki took turns Monday denying pressuring the RCMP, or interfering in the police investigation into the Nova Scotia mass shooting, saying that their approaches were appropriate and warranted, given the unprecedented nature of the situation.

Inflation rate will remain 'painfully high' all year, Bank of Canada governor anticipates
Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem says Canada's inflation rate is set to remain 'painfully high' for the rest of the year. In an exclusive interview with CTV News, Macklem says the path to a 'soft' economic landing is 'narrowing' but at this point the central bank is not projecting a recession.
Where do the inquiries into the 'Freedom Convoy' protests and use of Emergencies Act stand?
Five months ago, the first 'Freedom Convoy' trucks rolled into Ottawa. After the federal government took the unprecedented step of invoking the Emergencies Act to end the protests, a series of inquiries and probes have been initiated. With the nation's capital bracing for more protests over the Canada Day weekend, CTVNews.ca takes a look at where the main commissions and studies stand.
What key legislation passed, what's in limbo after Parliament breaks for summer
Now that the House and Senate have adjourned for the summer, CTVNews.ca breaks down what key pieces of legislation passed in the final days of the spring session, and what key government bills will be left to deal with in the fall.
Where the five Conservative leadership candidates stand on key policy issues
The Conservative Party leadership race is well underway as contenders hold rallies, duke it out in debates, and slowly release more details of their policy platforms. Here's a snapshot of where the five candidates stand on the economy, housing, climate, defence and social issues.
Opinion
OPINION | Don Martin: The fall of Justin Trudeau has begun
'After a weeks-long survey of just about everyone I've met ... the overall judgment on Justin Trudeau is one of being a political write-off,' writes Don Martin in an opinion column for CTVNews.ca. 'He’s too woke, too precious, preachy in tone, exceedingly smug, lacking in leadership, fading in celebrity, slow to act, short-sighted in vision and generally getting more irritating with every breathlessly whispered public pronouncement,' Martin writes.

OPINION | Don Martin: It's time for the whiners to win and the government to unclog the airports
It's time for the whiners to win and the government to reopen the skies, a return to those glory times of flying when the biggest complaints were expensive parking, a middle seat and stale pretzels, commentator Don Martin writes in an exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca.
OPINION | Don Martin: A basic Doug Ford takes a middle-of-the-road victory lap in Ontario election
In an exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin says Doug Ford coasted to majority re-election victory in Ontario by sticking to the middle of the road: 'Not too progressive. Not too conservative.'
OPINION | Don Martin: Premier Jason Kenney deserved a better death
There's a lesson for Canada's political leaders in the short life and quick death of Jason Kenney as premier of Alberta, writes Don Martin in an exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca.
OPINION | Don Martin: Ford on cruise control to victory in Ontario while Alberta votes on killing Kenney as UCP leader
It's becoming a make-or-break week for two Conservative premiers as their futures pivot on a pair of defining moments, writes Don Martin in an exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca.
ANALYSIS & INSIGHTS
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Occupancy exceeded: Banff, Alta., home possessed more than 40 beds
Alberta Health Services has issued an enforcement order against a Banff home after an inspection discovered that as many as 42 people were staying inside the property, saying the maximum number of occupants of the facility 'was exceeded.'

Summer of heat waves: A list of some temperature records broken in Canada this year
Canada's summer of heat waves continues this weekend, with warnings issued in four provinces. CTVNews.ca looks at some of the heat records broken already this year in Canada.
Air Canada denying passenger compensation claims for staff shortages, citing safety
Air Canada denied a customer complaint and instructed employees to classify flight cancellations caused by staff shortages as a "safety" problem, which would exclude travellers from compensation under federal regulations. That policy remains in place.
Help on the way for central Newfoundland fire Premier says is largest since 1961
The rapid growth of a long-burning forest fire in central Newfoundland has triggered a state of emergency in the area and the expansion of an outdoor fire ban to the entire province.
Multiple people in hospital, suspect shot after machete attack on Vancouver's Granville Street
Five people, including a suspect, were taken to hospital with serious injuries after a violent incident that drew a massive police presence to downtown Vancouver's main entertainment district Saturday night.
How Biden's new approach has led to legacy-defining wins
Over five decades in Washington, Joe Biden knew that the way to influence was to be in the room where it happens. But in the second year of his presidency, some of Biden's most striking, legacy-defining legislative victories came about by staying out of it.
No Stanley Cup? No problem. Canadiens fan makes near-exact replica using 3D printer
The Montreal Canadiens haven't brought the Stanley Cup home since 1993 -- but a very convincing replica is sitting in a garage in Boisbriand, Que., about 35 km northwest of Montreal.
U.S. sheriff stocking county's schools with AR-15 rifles
When schools in one North Carolina county reopen later this month, new security measures will include stocking AR-15 rifles for school resource officers to use in the event of an active shooter.
Two-year-old child found safe in Regina, Amber Alert ends
A two-year-old child from Regina has been found safe, following an alleged abduction and Amber Alert.