The professional body for HR and people development's call follows the introduction in April this year of Jack’s Law, which gives working parents the legal right to paid bereavement leave if they lose a child under the age of 18.  

The CIPD would like to see employees who experience the loss of any close family member – including a parent, child, partner or sibling, whether by blood, adoption or through marriage/a partner – have the right to two weeks’ leave or paid leave from work.Aside from Jack’s Law, there is currently no legal requirement for employers to pay employees who take leave following the death of a close family member. While employees have the right to reasonable time off work to deal with emergencies involving dependents, the law does not state how much time can be taken. 

Lack of consistent bereavement leave for UK employees

The CIPD's call has been backed by Lucy Herd, the founder of Jack’s Rainbow, a support group which has long campaigned for changes to bereavement leave and supported the successful introduction of parental bereavement legislation named after her son, Jack. Also backing the open letter are Alex James, BereavementUK founder, Emma Donaldson-Feilder, Director of Affinity Coaching Supervision and charity Cruse Bereavement Care.   

The ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic highlights the need for bereavement leave to be extended to anyone suffering the loss of a close family member, says the CIPD. Its research found that just over half (54%) of employees said that they were aware of their employer having a policy or support in place for employees experiencing bereavement, while many were not.Bereavement can have a significant impact on a person’s mental health and wellbeing and organisations risk adding work-related stress to what is already a difficult situation if they do not make it clear to employees the bereavement policies that are in place and the support services available to them.  

Bereavement and employee wellbeing

Claire McCartney, Senior Resourcing and Inclusion Adviser at the CIPD, said the issue of inconsistent bereavement leave provision can make an already stressful and upsetting time worse: “Losing a family member, partner or friend can have a devastating impact on a person’s mental health and wellbeing. Employees experiencing bereavement need to be treated with compassion and support in the workplace.“The introduction of Jack’s Law in April was an important step forward in recognising the need for parental bereavement leave and pay. We want to see this extended to all employees who are experiencing a bereavement of a close family member. Bereavement can have a significant impact on a person and their work and it is vital that employees are supported with appropriate time off at what is already an extremely difficult time. Bereaved employees are highly unlikely to be able to perform well at work if they are forced to return too quickly.” 

Dealing with bereavement during the Covid-19 pandemic

Acknowledging the UK's loss of 45,000 lives from coronavirus, and the fact that many people will not have had the chance to say a proper goodbye to their loved ones, the CIPD has launched new guidance for employers around compassionate and comprehensive bereavement support.It encourages employers to develop a bereavement policy, to empower managers to support employees, put in place flexible working practices to best support employee needs, and provide information to employees on workplace support for bereavement.A separate line manager guide is also available and focuses on how to manage and support a team member who has experienced a bereavement.  

Follow the link for more HR and CIPD news from Relocate Global 

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