Bereavement Policy

Administrative Procedure 5.506

Elgin Community College provides Bereavement Leave to all College, regular, non-faculty employees who work half-time or more on a regular basis that have not been classified as Temporary, Contingent, or Seasonal and who are not included in a collective bargaining unit with the College. Eligible employees may use up to three (3) work days without loss of pay, for bereavement of the death of a family member as defined as spouse, domestic partner, civil union partner, spouse-substitute, children, parents, siblings, grandparents, grandparents-in-law, grandchildren, parents-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, legal guardians and dependents (as defined by the Internal Revenue Code Section 152).

Bereavement pay is calculated based on the employee base pay rate at the time of the absence and will not include any special forms of compensations, such as incentives, commissions, bonuses, overtime or shift differentials. Bereavement leave will normally be granted unless there are unusual business needs or staffing requirements. An employee may, with his or her supervisors’ approval, use any available benefit time for additional time off as necessary.

The allotted days off with pay do not have to be consecutive. However, the allotted time off must be used within twelve (12) months of the death of the family member.

An employee who wishes to utilize Bereavement Leave must submit a request in eTime to his or her supervisor with as much notice as practicable. It shall be the duty of the employee’s supervisor, dean or their designee to determine the justification of leave under this policy.

The College reserves the right to require documentation of the death and/or relationship (e.g. death certificates, obituary, documentation from the funeral home, etc.).

This policy was last reviewed on 08/31/2023.