Employment law
Widowhood leave and pilgrimage leave
Two long absences that suspend the contract without ending it, and with no statutory obligation to pay.
Two situations lead to long absences that are neither sick leave, nor annual leave, nor a discretionary authorisation: widowhood of a female employee and pilgrimage to the holy places. The Labour Code treats them as grounds for suspending the employment contract.
That means two things, which must be held together: the post is protected, but pay is not automatically. Labour Code, Article L.34 (French).
1. Widowhood leave
Widowhood leave is granted to a female employee whose husband has died, for a maximum duration of four months and ten days.
Three characteristics follow:
| Characteristic | Scope |
|---|---|
| It is a right, not a favour | The request is not assessed on the merits; it is acknowledged |
| The duration is a maximum | Four months and ten days; an early return remains possible |
| The contract is suspended | The post is kept and the contractual bond remains |
Justification is provided by the death certificate. There is no call for more: the event opens the right by itself.
2. Pilgrimage leave
Pilgrimage leave is granted on the same terms as widowhood leave: the same suspension regime, the same effects on the contract.
In practice it calls for particular organisation, because it is foreseeable. Pilgrimage dates are known in advance, which allows, and should be encouraged, an early request, arrangements for cover, and where several employees are concerned in the same year, staggered departures.
A written internal policy, set out in the internal rules under the technical organisation of work, is more useful here than case-by-case handling: it fixes the notice period for requests, the rule where requests compete, and the arrangements for return.
3. Is pay maintained?
This is the most frequent question, and the answer must be exact. The Code imposes no obligation on the employer to pay during these periods of leave. Suspension of the contract entails, in principle, suspension of the obligation to pay salary.
That does not close the analysis. Three levels remain to be checked before settling the payroll treatment:
| Level to check | What it may provide |
|---|---|
| The sector collective agreement | Full or partial maintenance of pay, or a flat-rate allowance |
| The establishment agreement | A more favourable provision specific to the company |
| Established company practice | A repeated and general practice, which is delicate to remove without a procedure |
The absence of a statutory obligation therefore does not prevent contractual or voluntary maintenance of pay. It simply means that such maintenance, where it exists, comes from a source other than the Code.
4. What effects on other rights?
Suspension does not end the contract: accrued seniority remains, and the employee returns to their post at the end of the leave.
There remains the question of whether the period counts as actual working time for calculating annual leave. The Code does not expressly settle this for these two forms of leave: here again, it is the collective or establishment agreement that determines the treatment. Failing any provision, the question is assessed against the company's practice, consistently applied.
On all the grounds for suspension and their effects, see Absence: the various grounds.
5. How to handle the request
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| Receive the request | In writing, with supporting evidence: death certificate, or pilgrimage documentation |
| Check the applicable regime | Collective agreement, establishment agreement, internal practice |
| Formalise the agreement | A certificate stating the duration, the return date and the pay treatment |
| Arrange cover | Where appropriate through a replacement fixed-term contract naming the person replaced |
| Prepare the return | Confirm the date, reinstate in the same post |
The fourth line deserves particular attention: a four-month absence is naturally covered by a replacement contract, provided it states the name and qualification of the person replaced. An anonymous replacement contract is not a replacement contract.
6. Three mistakes to avoid
- Treating these periods as absences for personal convenience and deducting them from annual leave. They are grounds for suspension, not discretionary authorisations.
- Concluding too quickly that no pay is due. The absence of a statutory obligation does not remove the need to check the collective agreement and company practice.
- Leaving the post vacant without a written replacement contract, then regularising afterwards. Cover is formalised before the replacement starts work.
Key takeaways
| The rule | What it implies |
|---|---|
| Widowhood: four months and ten days maximum | Granted to a female employee whose husband has died |
| Pilgrimage: the same terms | The same regime, but foreseeable, so to be organised in advance |
| The contract is suspended, not ended | The post is kept and seniority remains |
| No statutory obligation to pay | Check the collective agreement, establishment agreement and practice |
| These are not convenience absences | They are not deducted from annual leave on that basis |
| Cover is formalised in writing | With the name and qualification of the person replaced |