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Title:	Bereavement Leave Policy
Publication date:	2/7/2012
Effective date:	2/7/2012

BRIEF

Policy Summary

Berkeley Lab recognizes the importance of family and the difficulties employees face following the death of a family member or another person close to the employee. The Laboratory provides time off for this purpose.

Who Should Read This Policy

This policy applies to all employee classifications: Career, Term, Postdoctoral Fellow, Limited, Visiting Researcher, Faculty, Rehired Retiree, Graduate Student Research Assistant (GSRA), and Student Assistant.
This policy applies to nonrepresented employees. Employees who are represented by an exclusive bargaining agent should refer to their collective bargaining agreement (CBA).

To Read the Full Policy, Go To:

The POLICY tab on this wiki page

Contact Information

For more information, employees may contact their division's Human Resources (HR) Center.
Feedback on HR policies or procedures is welcomed. Send comments to hrpolicies@lbl.gov.

Title:	Bereavement Leave Policy
Publication date:	2/7/2012
Effective date:	2/7/2012

POLICY

A. Purpose

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) recognizes the importance of family and the difficulties employees face following the death of a family member or another person close to the family. The Laboratory provides time off for this purpose.

B. Persons Affected

This policy applies to all employee classifications: Career, Term, Postdoctoral Fellow, Limited, Visiting Researcher, Faculty, Rehired Retiree, Graduate Student Research Assistant (GSRA), and Student Assistant.
This policy applies to nonrepresented employees. Employees who are represented by an exclusive bargaining agent should refer to their collective bargaining agreement (CBA).

C. Exceptions

Requests for bereavement leave that exceed what is allowed under current policy or that are not expressly addressed by current policy are considered exceptions to policy. A request for an exception to policy requires, at minimum, the approval of the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO).

D. Policy Statement

Eligibility for Bereavement Leave: All employees are eligible to take paid or unpaid bereavement leave. Employees eligible to accrue sick leave may use a portion of their accrued sick leave for paid bereavement leave.

Use of Bereavement Leave

If you need time away from work…	You may be eligible to use the following amount of sick leave or unpaid leave:
For the death of a family member (spouse, domestic partner, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, in-law, or step-relative in the same relationship) or person residing in your household	Up to 10 days for each family member or person residing in the household
For the death of an individual who is not a family member or person residing in your household	In total, up to five days in a calendar year

If an employee requires more than the time allowed for bereavement leave, he/she may request an unpaid personal leave of absence or may use any accrued vacation leave.
An employee may not use accrued sick leave for bereavement leave:
1. As a personal day off. Employees must use accrued vacation for a personal day off.
2. After his/her effective date of separation, retirement, or layoff
3. In excess of his/her scheduled hours of work (e.g., an employee scheduled to work six hours a day would not take eight hours of bereavement leave a day) up to a maximum of eight hours per day and 40 hours per week, including extended workweek situations
4. During work deferment or leave without pay
5. On an intermittent basis for purposes of eligibility for holiday pay and employer-paid contributions toward benefits. However, if the employee is taking Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave on an intermittent or reduced-schedule basis, refer to the applicable policies (Family Care and Medical Leave, Pregnancy Disability Leave, Parental Bonding Leave) for further details.

Evidence of the Need for Bereavement Leave: An employee may be required to submit satisfactory proof of the bereavement.
Return to Work
1. An employee is expected to return to work no later than the next regularly scheduled workday after the bereavement leave has ended.
2. An employee who unexpectedly cannot return to work on the next regularly scheduled workday after the bereavement leave has ended must notify his/her supervisor soon as possible to explain the reason for the absence.
3. Failure to return to work after the bereavement leave has ended without supervisory approval is considered an unauthorized absence. Five consecutive workdays of unauthorized absence constitutes job abandonment and may lead to disciplinary action up to and including termination from employment. See the Unauthorized Absences and Job Abandonment Policy.
Misuse of Leave
1. Misrepresenting reasons for requesting time off, including but not limited to misrepresentations that could lead to concerns of conflict of interest and/or fraud, may result in disciplinary action, suspension without pay, and/or termination from employment.
2. Employees on an approved leave of absence for which a medical certification is required may jeopardize their right to leave benefits and or their continued employment by engaging in activities incompatible with the medical certification submitted in support of the leave.

E. Roles and Responsibilities

Role	Responsibility
Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO)	Has the functional responsibility for this policy
Employees	Must adhere to the provisions of this policy, including requesting bereavement leave in advance of the event, when foreseeable
HR Department	Must advise management and employees on how to comply with this policy
LETS Timekeepers	Must follow procedures in support of this policy
Manager and Supervisor	Must adhere to the provisions of this policy, including approving requests for this type of leave in accordance with policy
Payroll	Must develop procedures in support of this policy

F. Definitions/Acronyms

Term

Definition

Child

A biological, adopted, step-, or foster child of the employee or a legal ward of the employee or
A person for whom the employee stands in loco parentis, meaning "in place of the parent," for whom the employee has day-to-day caretaking or financial responsibilities
A person under 18 or incapable of self-care due to a mental or physical disability

NOTE: For purposes of this policy, a child of an employee or domestic partner can be over the age of 18.

Domestic Partner

The individual designated as an employee's domestic partner under one of the following methods:

Registration of the partnership with the state of California
Establishment of a same-sex legal union, other than marriage, formed in another jurisdiction that is substantially equivalent to a state of California-registered domestic partnership
Filing of a Declaration of Domestic Partnership form with the University of California

If an individual has not been designated as an employee's domestic partner by any of the above methods, the following criteria are applicable in defining domestic partner:
The individual is the employee's sole domestic partner in a long-term, committed relationship with the intention to remain so indefinitely; and
Neither individual is legally married to someone else or a partner in another domestic partnership; and
The individuals are not related by blood to a degree of closeness that would prohibit legal marriage in the state of California; and
Each individual is 18 years of age or older and capable of consenting to the relationship; and
The individuals share a common residence and are financially interdependent

G. Recordkeeping Requirements

Role

Responsibility

Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)

Must maintain a complete and accurate record of sick leave accrued and used by eligible employees, including each employee's current available sick leave balance and accrual rate. Maintains a complete and accurate record of bereavement-leave usage by eligible employees.

Non-exempt employees. Berkeley Lab will record leave used by non-exempt employees to the nearest quarter hour.

Exempt employees. Berkeley Lab will record leave used by employees in half-day increments or in increments of not less than that portion of the day during which an employee on less than full-time pay status is normally scheduled to work. The foregoing does not apply when an employee is using accrued sick leave while taking Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave on an intermittent or reduced-schedule basis. Refer to the applicable policies (Family Care and Medical Leave, Pregnancy Disability Leave, Parental Bonding Leave) for further details.

H. Implementing Documents

Audience	Document Number	Document Title	Type
All Laboratory Staff	UBEN250	UC Declaration of Domestic Partnership	Form
Manager and Supervisor	02.07.004.002	Manager and Supervisor Responsibilities under the Bereavement Leave Policy	Process
Managers and Supervisors	02.86.001.001	Supervisor Responsibilities at Berkeley Lab (BLI0117) (mandatory for new supervisors)	Training
Managers and Supervisors	02.86.001.002	Supervisor Scenario Workshop – HR Issues (BLI0122) (mandatory for new supervisors)	Training
For HR Staff	02.07.004.001	Understanding the Bereavement Leave Policy Presentation	Training

I. Contact Information