Bereavement Leave Policy
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Effective Date:
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November 2025
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Focus Group:
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Full-time Employees
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Purpose:
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To support employees during times of personal loss by providing paid time away from work for grieving, attending services, and handling necessary arrangements in the event of a family member’s death.
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Guidelines:
1. Immediate Family Bereavement LeaveEmployees may take up to 5 days of paid bereavement leave following the death of an immediate family member.
Immediate family includes:
2. Extended Family Bereavement LeaveEmployees may take up to 3 days of paid bereavement leave to attend the funeral of an extended family member.
Extended family includes:
3. Verification and ApprovalThe organization may require reasonable documentation to verify the need for leave (e.g., obituary, funeral program, written notice of services).
Supervisors and HR will review each request on a case-by-case basis to ensure equity and to accommodate unique circumstances when appropriate.
4. Pay During Bereavement Leave
5. Additional ConsiderationsGOI recognizes that grief may affect employees differently. Employees needing additional time off beyond the paid leave provided may request vacation, sick leave (when appropriate), or unpaid leave, subject to supervisor and HR approval.
Immediate family includes:
- Spouse
- Parent or stepparent
- Child or stepchild
- Sibling
- Grandparent
- Grandchild
- Parent-in-law
- Son-in-law or daughter-in-law
- Brother-in-law or sister-in-law
2. Extended Family Bereavement LeaveEmployees may take up to 3 days of paid bereavement leave to attend the funeral of an extended family member.
Extended family includes:
- Aunts
- Uncles
- Cousins
- Supervisors must apply these categories consistently and consult HR if the relationship is unclear or falls outside the listed designations.
3. Verification and ApprovalThe organization may require reasonable documentation to verify the need for leave (e.g., obituary, funeral program, written notice of services).
Supervisors and HR will review each request on a case-by-case basis to ensure equity and to accommodate unique circumstances when appropriate.
4. Pay During Bereavement Leave
- Bereavement leave is paid at the employee’s regular hourly rate, up to 8 hours per day.
- Time taken under this policy does not count as hours worked when calculating overtime for nonexempt employees.
5. Additional ConsiderationsGOI recognizes that grief may affect employees differently. Employees needing additional time off beyond the paid leave provided may request vacation, sick leave (when appropriate), or unpaid leave, subject to supervisor and HR approval.