Establish a bereavement leave policy at {{companyName}}

Template demand letter

Demand Letters outline the problem you are seeking to address with your campaign. Once demand letters obtain enough signatures, you can use this platform to send them to decision makers at your company, protecting your anonymity.

About the template

Establish and expand a compassionate bereavement policy at your company. And, push to broaden the circumstances where bereavement leave can be used.

About the author

Claire is an organizer and designer based in Chicago. In the past year and a half she's worked on a mayoral, congressional and presidential race where she helped unionize a top-tier presidential campaign. She believes collective action leads to more informed citizens and a healthier society.

To:[management@company.com]

Context

Loss is hard to handle and even harder still when we fear the repercussions at work for caring for ourselves during a painful period. It’s come to our attention that [Company] doesn’t have a clear bereavement policy in place. We know well that loss and grief can affect anyone and the COVID pandemic has only made it more pertinent to establish a bereavement policy now that humanely helps people manage during a global pandemic.

Reasoning

Federal law does not mandate bereavement leave however the majority of companies offer a bereavement policy for their workplace. Grieving is a natural human state that is necessary for recovery. Without time for this essential self-care it’s impossible to successfully reintegrate into work. [Company] can take this into consideration by establishing a clear bereavement policy for all employees.

What we’re asking

A no-questions asked paid 5-day bereavement policy for any immediate family member or close friend.
Define other categories of loss that could apply to the bereavement policy such as miscarriages, pet deaths, and racial violence incidents.
Allow flexible use for the bereavement time so employees can use it consecutively or broken up.
Normalize taking personal time throughout the day once an employee who is grieving resumes work.
Offer a stipend for grief counseling.
Lay out options for a longer departure from work if necessary, such as an unpaid leave with an assurance to be hired back in 30 days with health coverage extension during that period.

GetFrank®, PBC