When an employee dies

When an employee dies at work, you will need to deal with the next of kin very sensitively. A manager who knows the employee well may be the most appropriate person to break the news, or sometimes a colleague who knows the family well may volunteer.

At an appropriate time, you will need to inform the next of kin about their entitlement to:

• life assurance or death-in-service benefits
• remaining wage or salary payments
• outstanding payments for untaken holidays
• pension entitlements
• any personal effects the deceased may have at the workplace

See practical steps when an employee dies.

After establishing when the funeral is to take place, it is a good idea to ask the next of kin whether colleagues of the deceased are welcome to attend.

You may wish to send a letter of condolence to the family of the deceased. You might also want to organise a floral arrangement to send to the funeral, or arrange some other tribute, and allow employees to contribute towards this. You may wish to place a notice in the local press (covering both sides of the community).

It might be appropriate to honour the person who died, with others at work. For example, you might consider:

• organising a book of condolence for staff to share their memories of the person who died
• holding an event or service to honour the person who died, inviting the family or next of kin as well, if appropriate