When he comes back to work.

• Ask him what he wants the team to know, and how. Some Dads want to tell people themselves; some would rather you did.
• Offer flexibility: a gradual return, time for appointments, a quiet place to step away to.
• Point him to your Employee Assistance Program, and to Get help. Red Nose also has resources for employers and colleagues.
• Tell him there’s no rush, and mean it.

In Australia, every employee, casuals included, can take two days’ compassionate leave each time a baby in their immediate family is stillborn or dies, and when they or their partner has a miscarriage. It’s paid for full-time and part-time employees.

If a baby is stillborn or dies in the first 24 months, an eligible parent can still take up to 12 months’ unpaid parental leave, and the employer can’t cancel it or call him back to work. Employer-paid parental leave can’t be cancelled because of the loss either, with a few exceptions. Government Parental Leave Pay, or the Stillborn Baby Payment, may also apply.

Checked with Fair Work and Services Australia on 2 October 2026. Your own policy or agreement may give more. When in doubt, give more time, not less.

• Say something. “I’m so sorry about [name]” is enough.
• Don’t pretend nothing happened, and don’t make him the topic of the day.
• Remember the dates, especially Father’s Day and Bereaved Fathers Day.
• Check in again at three months, and again at the anniversary.

The last Sunday in August, the week before Father’s Day. A few small things go a long way.

• Send a note to the team on the Friday before. There’s one above you can copy.
• Shout a coffee, and check in with the Dads you know are carrying it.
• Give people a little flexibility around Father’s Day.

Dads are often in the room for everything, and then overlooked. Ask him directly how he’s going, and give him something of his own to take home.

Charities to refer Dads to