DPD Ireland – Compassionate Leave Policy
Compassionate Leave may be granted to provide staff with time away from work at a time of personal or family need, especially when there is a death in the family.
Leave with pay will be available on the death of an immediate relative (spouse, civil partner, mother, father, sister, brother, child, mother-in-law, father-in-law).
In the unfortunate event that an employee suffers a bereavement, the organisation is here to support employees during this difficult time. The purpose of this policy is to advise employees of the supports available along with information on leave which an employee may be entitled to.
The provisions regarding compassionate leave with pay which may be granted to an employee in the event of the death of a relative are up to a limit of:
Five working days in the case of a spouse (including a cohabiting partner), son, daughter (including adopted children and children being cared for on the basis of ‘in loco parentis’) or any person in a relationship of domestic dependency, including same sex partners, Parent, sister or brother.
Three working days in the case of other immediate relatives as follows: mother/father-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, uncle/aunt, son/daughter-in-law.
In exceptional circumstances (e.g. where the employee concerned has lived in the same house as the deceased or has to take charge of funeral arrangements), an employee may be granted up to three working days’ compassionate leave on the death of a more distant relative.
In a case where an employee has to travel abroad to make funeral arrangements in respect of a relative specified in paragraph 1, compassionate leave with pay in excess of the limits prescribed above may be granted at the discretion of the employer.
Compassionate leave is granted only at the time of the bereavement to facilitate the employee with time off from work and cannot be granted retrospectively where it occurs during days when an employee is not normally scheduled to work.
Compassionate leave is granted at the discretion of the organisation. Each situation will be looked at on a case-by-case basis and additional paid leave, unpaid leave or another form of leave may be facilitated.
Supports
The organisation recognises that your health and work performance can be affected by bereavement and that each person’s journey with grief is different and personal to their experiences.
The organisation acknowledges that people grieve in different ways and require different levels of support. Should an employee wish to seek support they may feel most comfortable by approaching their manager in first instance. Managers will deal with this in a sensitive and supportive manner.
Employees also have access to our Employee Assistance Programme which promotes the health and well-being of all employees.
The DPD Employee Assistance Programme is a free and fully confidential 24/7 service available for all employees or any family member over 16 living in the same household.
Full details of the services they have available here . There are a number of methods to contact the EAP, their online portal where you can access information and support via Chat or simply call 1800 911 909 for telephone assistance.
To access use the code LAYAEAP