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What to Know About Bereavement Leave
Create a bereavement leave policy that follows these laws and best practices.
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Navigating an appropriate response when someone loses a loved one can be uncomfortable and confusing, especially for an employer. However, rather than shying away from the situation, offer grieving employees the support they need during these difficult times. Having a well-defined bereavement leave policy in place is an appropriate way to do this. Before crafting one, understand the laws around bereavement leave and how they apply to your business.
Bereavement leave basics
Knowing the basics of bereavement leave can help you create a policy that supports your employees.
What is bereavement leave?
Bereavement leave, also known as compassionate leave, is a period of paid or unpaid time off employees can take following the death of a family member or close friend. Employees can use bereavement leave to grieve the loss of their loved one, take care of arrangements and plan or attend funeral services.
Is bereavement leave mandatory?
Sometimes. While there are no federal bereavement leave laws, there are some state laws. Here are a few state guidelines to note.
State | Bereavement Leave Requirements | Who the Law Applies To |
|---|---|---|
California | Employees who have been employed for at least 30 days can take up to five days of leave for the death of a family member. The leave can be used consecutively or separately within three months of the family member’s death. Employers can require documentation and choose whether the leave is paid or unpaid. | Employers with five or more employees |
Colorado | Under the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act, employees can take up to 48 hours of paid leave after the death of a family member. | All employers |
Illinois | Employees can take up to two weeks of unpaid leave for the death of a covered family member. This is also for losses related to fertility, pregnancy, surrogacy and adoption. Employees who experience more than one event in a 12-month period may use a maximum of six weeks of leave. Employers may require reasonable documentation. | Employers with 50 or more employees |
Maryland | As part of the Maryland Flexible Leave Act, employees can use any existing accrued paid leave for the death of an immediate family member. | Employers with 15 or more employees |
Oregon | Employees who have worked an average of 25 hours per week for 180 days can take up to two weeks off for the death of a family member, within 60 days of learning about the death. The max is four weeks per calendar leave year. | Employers with 25 or more employees |
State and city guidelines are ever-changing, so other eligibility requirements for bereavement leave may exist depending on where your business is based and where your employees live. It’s crucial to familiarize yourself with the laws in your area to stay compliant.
Who can take bereavement leave?
Most state laws let employers decide who can take bereavement leave. This applies to employee type, such as full-time vs. part-time, and employee relationship to the deceased. According to the NFP, 88 percent of employers limit bereavement leave to designated family members only, while one-third expand allowances to include anyone of close relations and another 7 percent even include the death of a pet as a qualifying reason for leave.
The best bereavement policies are comprehensive and allow eligible employees to take paid leave after the loss of any loved one, regardless of the employee’s relationship to the deceased, such as spouse, domestic partner, child, parent, stepparent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, friend or neighbor. Your bereavement leave policy should clearly state who is eligible for leave and when.
Is proof required to take bereavement leave?
It is up to you to say if employees need to provide proof of death to take bereavement leave. Asking for proof can be uncomfortable and seem insensitive, so approach the situation with compassion. When requiring proof, make it as easy as possible for the employee. Let them submit the needed documentation after they have returned to work.
Shirley King, founder of Life On Power, said reasonable examples of proof can be an obituary or funeral notice. You can also ask for a written request that lists the deceased’s name, date of death, city of death and the relationship to the employee.
How long is bereavement leave?
The average bereavement leave policy grants an employee three to four days off for the loss of an immediate family member, like the employee’s spouse and less time for the loss of extended family or friends.
In the NFP study, more than half of employers (57 percent) offered three days of leave, 18 percent offered five days and another 18 percent said the number of days varies based on individual needs.
At some companies, employees can negotiate for additional time off by getting permission to take paid vacation days, sick leave or unpaid time off. Because bereavement leave is optional in most states, the number of days an employee can take off work will likely depend on what your bereavement leave policy dictates.
>> Read next: Paid Time Off Policy Best Practices
Is bereavement leave paid or unpaid?
Bereavement leave can be paid or unpaid. However, most businesses offer full or partial pay for the allotted days off.
Why your business should provide bereavement leave
Many people see providing bereavement leave as the right thing to do, something that is kind and reflects the morals and values of the organization. But there are practical benefits a company stands to gain too:
- Employee productivity: Employees who don’t get to take leave might have extra difficulty keeping up with their responsibilities and being productive due to the emotional stress they experience. From that vantage point, it’s in a company’s interest to provide leave if they want their employees to be as mentally healthy as possible and to succeed in their roles going forward.
- Employee retention: Beyond the benefits of supporting employees’ mental and emotional health, providing paid bereavement leave can foster employee appreciation and loyalty, which subsequently impact employee retention.
- Employee motivation: If you help your employees through this difficult time and give them space to grieve, you increase the likelihood that they will not only be capable of returning to their work when the time comes but also be motivated to do so.
Mindy Cassel, co-founder and senior clinical and program advisor to the Children’s Bereavement Center, said companies and supervisors have an opportunity to influence the recovery of their employees by supporting them after a loss via bereavement leave.
“The benefit to the company is that of greater appreciation and loyalty by both the griever and the staff for their compassion during a critical life event,” Cassel told us. “The adjustment of the bereft employee will be enhanced by reduced stress, flexibility and social support.”
Bereavement policy advice for business owners
Although bereavement leave is not legally mandatory in most states, it is a best practice for every business to offer some form of it. Here are some tips to follow for creating an effective bereavement leave policy.
Create a comprehensive policy.
Companies can support their employees by creating a clear and comprehensive bereavement leave policy.
King said a comprehensive bereavement leave policy should address the following:
- Who qualifies for bereavement leave?
- What are the guidelines for immediate family members, extended family members and friends?
- How many days of bereavement leave can an employee take?
- Is bereavement leave paid or unpaid?
- What are the guidelines for requesting bereavement leave?
- What documentation is required for bereavement leave requests?
- How will your current payroll system track bereavement leave?
>> Learn more: See the best online payroll services if you need to make a switch.
Make the policy inclusive.
It is essential that your bereavement leave policy aligns with your available resources and is as inclusive as possible. When determining the guidelines for immediate and extended family members, King advised business owners and managers to remember that blended families are a large part of employee family life in our current society.
Allow for leave flexibility.
You may also want to create a policy that allows for flexibility as to the days the employee can take off, such as the policy can indicate the number of days for bereavement leave, but the employee can schedule the specific dates with their immediate supervisor. Not everyone will want to take their entire leave all at once depending on the specifics of their situation.
Maintain an updated policy in your employee handbook.
Include the bereavement policy in your employee handbook and update it as needed. To prevent claims of discrimination in the workplace, apply the policy fairly across your organization.
“For optimal acceptable use of the bereavement policy, members of management should have an annual policy review, along with other annual pertinent policy reviews,” said King.
How to support a grieving employee
On top of your bereavement policy, there are many ways that you and your team can assist a grieving employee when they return to work.
Cassel shared 10 ways a business owner can support bereft workers.
- Educate your staff about the needs of the grieving employee.
- Enable colleagues who work closely with the grieving employee to attend funeral and memorial services, if appropriate.
- If the grieving employee needs to make travel arrangements to be with family and attend services, point them toward helpful resources like Tripadvisor and Trip.com, which may have last-minute deals on flights and lodging.
- Offer the grieving employee a flexible work schedule that allows them to tend to their personal needs.
- Find one or more employees who can assist with the grieving employee’s workload.
- Connect the grieving employee with a company mentor, such as a staff member who is close to the employee or who has experienced a similar loss, for emotional support.
- Continue to pay the grieving employee’s salary during leave and flextime.
- Avoid calling the grieving employee about work matters during the funeral, wake or shiva.
- Send a donation, food or flowers to the grieving employee and ask if other assistance is needed, such as food shopping.
- Facilitate additional help through your HR team, employee assistance program or local support services.
Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.
