Bereavement | Why sickness absence is rarely the answer

By Tracey Ward, Head of Business Development & Marketing at Generali UK Employee Benefits

“Quite often, we see that when compassionate leave comes to an end, an employer moves an employee on to sickness absence. This might be helpful to give the employee a little extra time, but it also runs the risk of medicalising bereavement,” says Kay Needle, Early Intervention & Rehabilitation Expert at Generali UK Employee Benefits. In a minority of cases – perhaps where an existing condition is exacerbated by the bereavement – sickness absence might well be appropriate. But, in the majority of cases, there are other, more helpful things employers can do.