StartEaseBereavement leave policy: what it is, why offer it, and how to set it up
What bereavement (funeral) leave is, why companies offer it, what federal law says, and how to set up a bereavement leave policy in StartEase block by block.
What is a bereavement leave policy?
Bereavement leave, also called funeral leave, is time off after a family member dies: to grieve, plan and attend a funeral, and travel.
Why companies offer it
- It supports people at the hardest time.
- It avoids forcing someone to use vacation for a funeral.
- A clear rule spares managers from deciding case by case.
What the law says, in short
Federal law does not require bereavement leave. The U.S. Department of Labor says the FLSA does not require payment for time not worked, including attending a funeral; it is a matter of agreement between employer and employee.
How to set up a bereavement policy in StartEase
- Open Time › Time off and scroll to Policies.
- Under Add a policy, choose Bereavement, then select Add policy.
- Fill in each block below. The example is a sample "Bereavement leave" policy: your company chooses its own numbers.
- In Review and turn on, read the summary sentence and select Turn on this policy.
This example is Unlimited, so StartEase keeps no balance and the Caps block does not appear.
Basics
The name, the kind of leave, whether it is paid, and what employees read about it. More on this block.
| Box | What it means | In this example |
|---|---|---|
| Policy name | The name employees see when they ask for time off and on their balances. Required. | "Bereavement leave" |
| Kind of leave | What the leave is for. It picks the help link and the extra checks. It does not change how the balance is counted. Required.
| Bereavement |
| Pay | Whether the hours are paid. Required.
| Paid |
| Description for employees | Up to 600 characters on My time off: who qualifies and what the leave covers. Keep medical details out. | "Up to 5 days after the death of a family member." |
Earning
How the balance grows. Nothing is earned until a payroll is approved. More on this block.
| Box | What it means | In this example |
|---|---|---|
| How it is earned | How the balance grows. Required.
| Unlimited (no balance kept) The need decides the time, so no balance is kept. |
Rules
Waiting periods, negative balances, a yearly use limit and payout at exit. More on this block.
| Box | What it means | In this example |
|---|---|---|
| Waiting periods are counted in | The unit for the two waiting periods below.
| Days from the hire date |
| Before it can be used | Leave can be earned but not taken before this. Blank for none. | Blank |
| Most hours that can be used in a policy year | A yearly limit on hours taken. Blank for no limit. | Blank |
Requests
How employee requests are handled. More on this block.
| Box | What it means | In this example |
|---|---|---|
| Approve employee requests automatically | Ticked: a request that follows the rules is approved at once. Unticked: the Employer or payroll team approves each one. | Unticked |
| Most calendar days in one request | For example 10. Blank for no limit. | 5 Up to 5 calendar days for each loss. |
| Days of notice an employee must give | For example 3 means the first day must be at least 3 days away. Leave you record yourself is not checked. Blank for none. | Blank |
Employees
Who the policy covers and where each balance starts. More on this block.
| Box | What it means | In this example |
|---|---|---|
| All employees, including people added later | Ticked: everyone is covered, now and later. Unticked: tick each employee in the table. | Ticked |
| Starting balance (hours) | Hours the employee already has, for example from your old system. Blank starts at 0. | Not used: no balance is kept |
| As of | The date that starting balance is correct. Earning counts from this date, or from the policy's start date if blank. | Blank |
Review and turn on
The last check before employees can use the policy. More on this block.
| Box | What it means | In this example |
|---|---|---|
| Ready, or "N to finish" | Ready means every required box is filled. "2 to finish" means two boxes marked Required are empty. | |
| The summary sentence | The policy in one line, for example "Paid. 80 hours a year, spread over each paycheck". Read it before you turn the policy on. | |
| Turn on this policy / Turn off | Turns the policy on for the employees covered, or off. A new policy starts turned off. | |
| Delete this policy | Only while no leave has been recorded on it. After that you can turn it off but not delete it. |
Common questions
Why unlimited and not a balance?
No one plans a death. Unlimited with a limit per request (Most calendar days in one request) gives the same days for each loss.
Which family members count?
Write it in the Description for employees, for example spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent.
Federal law does not require bereavement leave. The U.S. Department of Labor says the FLSA does not require payment for time not worked, including attending a funeral; it is a matter of agreement between employer and employee.
Sources (government sites):