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Employees are the cornerstone of any for-profit organization, so it’s crucial to maintain a positive relationship with them. If this relationship suffers, the overall productivity of your company may suffer as well. Fortunately, many businesses these days are realizing the importance of employee satisfaction, and therefore considering ways to improve both workplace practices & company culture. After all, employees are hard to retain if they can be easily persuaded away to another company, so offering excellent benefits is key if you want to hire (and keep) the best of the best. One benefit you can offer that’s sure to attract potential employees is a Bereavement Leave Policy!
Bereavement leave is a unique benefit that ensures an employee time off if they experience a loss in the family. Employees are often worried to request time-off (even in the event of a family death), for fear of retaliation or being fired. Having a bereavement leave policy in place is a great way to show your employees that you care about them by placing value on their personal lives. It is great for employee retention because employees are much less likely to leave a company where they feel valued.
Unsure if a bereavement leave policy is right for your company? Here are a few facts to help you in your decisions.
- In most states, a bereavement leave policy is not required. Generally speaking, offering bereavement leave is up to the company’s discretion. However, in Oregon, you’re required to offer this type of leave (which can run up to two weeks) if you have more than 25 employees. In Illinois, the law is more lenient towards the company and only requires you to grant bereavement leave if an employee (parent) loses their child.
- The length will vary. As different religions perform different rituals, it’s hard to give an exact length for the bereavement leave offered. However, a general leave policy lasts from 3 to 5 days. Of course, the exact time required will vary per employee, so the HR department will have to handle this on a case-by-case basis.
- You’re not required to pay. In general, bereavement leave is offered as a courtesy, not a legal requirement, so you aren’t required to pay an employee for their time off. That said, many larger companies choose to pay their employees for their time off, but smaller businesses may not. It depends entirely on the policy set forth by your company.
- In general, bereavement leave is up to the discretion of management. This leave is supposed to offer time off to deal with a loss in the immediate family. Who the policy covers remain generally up to your company to decide. Some employers may include parents, in-laws, children, grandparents, or siblings in this category, while others may even include uncles/aunts, cousins, or pets in their policies.
- Though not required, it’s a good practice to put the policy on paper. Designing a formal document covering the benefits, duration, and limitations of bereavement leave are preferred over an unspoken agreement. This can prevent any disagreements in the future, and (assuming you add it to the employee’s personal file) you can reference it if needed later on.
When creating a written bereavement leave policy, you’ll want to make sure the policy covers all the ins and outs of any potential situation. Here are a few things you’ll need to include in the policy.
- The number of days allowed - Both the employee and the employer must be clear on how many days can be taken off. You can record this leave time in your HRIS software for future scheduling.
- Eligibility - You need to clarify the requirements for bereavement leave. Some companies may offer it to employees from day one, while others may require a certain amount of time on the job before taking bereavement leave.
- Who is covered under the policy - As mentioned before, this may vary by company. You can choose to limit bereavement leave to the death of an immediate family member, or extend it as far as employee pets! This is entirely up to your discretion.
- Paid or unpaid? - Paying employees for time-off is recommended, but not required. This will definitely improve your employer-employee relationship, however, some employees may use this policy to take advantage of you. Weigh the advantages vs. the disadvantages and make your decision accordingly.
A bereavement leave policy isn’t offered by every company, and many smaller businesses simply can’t afford it. Nevertheless, bereavement leave offers a great way to build employee trust, make employees feel valued, and attract potential new talent, so you should definitely consider if a bereavement policy makes sense for your business.
