Transcript Grief in the Workplace: How to Remedy a Conflict of

GRIEF IN THE
WORKPLACE
How to
Remedy a
Conflict of
Value Systems
Erin Barnes
Holly Boyer
Paula Jones
Katie Wheeler
Michael Zielinski
INTRODUCTION
Handling grief in the workplace is both a delicate and difficult issue
Unfortunately, it is also a common one
If not properly dealt with, there is the tendency for it to extend past the
grieving employee(s) into the foundation of the workplace itself by disrupting
communication, productivity, and relationships
Managers and employees must be trained and informed on how to best
approach grief
This presentation looks at a serious mishandling of grief in the workplace, how to
prevent and avoid similar situations, and possible solutions one might take to
remedy such an incident
CASE SUMMARY
Donna Martiniuk has worked for the River Rapids Public Library for 15
years; currently the assistant director for public services
The previous year, her daughter Emily was killed by a drunk driver
Jim Graylick, the library director, encouraged Donna to take as much time
as she needed after Emily’s death
She returned to work within two weeks, but with a new mission: the fight
against drunk driving
A natural spokesperson, Donna soon became a national figure and an
officer in a prominent anti-drunk driving organization.
CASE SUMMARY (2)
While Jim and the rest of the library staff supported Donna, her responsibilities at
the library soon started to suffer
After calculating that Donna had been away from the library for half the time over
the previous two months, and learning through discreet inquiries that much of her
work simply wasn’t getting done, Jim decided he had to talk to her
He carefully planned the meeting and came up with a number of options, including
an agreement on the level of outside activity, relinquishing her administrative
responsibilities, moving to a part-time position, or taking a leave of absence
He was also open to any suggestions Donna had
CASE SUMMARY (3)
The meeting did not go well
Donna quickly interrupted Jim, saying that she was trying to save lives and insisting that she
was getting all her work done by taking it home and on the road with her
Jim knew that the paperwork wasn’t getting done – and that an assistant director for public
services needed to be at the library
But he didn’t say any of that, as Donna went on to say that she still believed she could
combine both responsibilities and had assumed he would support her – but if he felt she was
taking advantage of the library, she would take her vacation days and then leave without pay
for any additional absences
Embarrassed and angry, Jim wondered if he should have talked to the board about the
problems before sitting down with Donna
LITERATURE REVIEW
Hazen (2009)
explores the
impact of grief
on the
workplace and
how managers
can be prepared
to handle it
Most of the
time, people
grieve because a
person closer to
the has died
In the United
States, about
2.5 million
people die every
year, with each
death affecting
an average of
five people
Likely, a large
number of those
bereaved people
are in the
workforce, often
returning to
work within a
week of their
losses (p.290)
LITERATURE REVIEW
Jim seemed
unaccustomed to
handling workplace
grief
Rather than address
it, Jim and others at
River Rapids did their
best to cover for
Donna and generally
ignored the problem
Although sympathetic
to her grieving, it was
Jim's job to hold
Donna accountable
for her
responsibilities as
assistant director, for
as Gordon states,
"Manager cannot
afford to make only
popular choices; they
need to base their
actions on what will
be best for the
institution" (p.76)
Jim's reluctance to
communicate with
Donna resulted in a
mishandled, onesided conversation
LITERATURE REVIEW
Gibson et. al.
(2010) tell us
that trauma to
parents following
a child's suicide
is often similar
to losing a child
by tragic
accidents
Parents have
difficulty
readjusting to
the workplace,
including
•Having a hard time
interacting socially with
colleagues
•Experiencing changes in
personal priorities, such as
how Donna has taken on a
new role allowing her to
help others prevent and
deal with drunk driving
Suggestions for
handling
bereaved
parents include
Employers
gradual returns
should expect
to work, a
changes in
change in the job
parent's behavior role or position,
and performance
help with the
at work
workload, and
support for the
parent and other
employees (p.
521)
LITERATURE REVIEW
Hazen also discusses
the impact of grief in
workplace and how
managers need to
recognize the
importance of being
informed about
•workplace grief,
•symptoms of grief,
•theories on how people heal,
•and how they can respond to
grief
While Donna's grief
was clear to all, it was
left unaddressed by
Jim
If managers know that
an employee has
experienced a loss,
they can
•acknowledge the loss,
•account for the grief,
•offer support,
•and work with the employee to
minimize possible damaging
effects in the workplace (p.293)
LITERATURE REVIEW
Tyler (2003)
mentions the
importance of
the human
resources
department or
representative
being involved
from the start
Organizations
should have a
formal policy
dealing with
bereavement,
including
leave (p.56)
HR has a role
in mediating
between the
employee and
supervisor in
handling
workload and
performance
for bereaved
parents (p.58)
The employee,
supervisor,
and HR rep
should have
serious
discussions
about
accommodations the
employee may
need and
supervisor
expectations
(p.58)
Reassignment
may be
necessary if
the employee
does not want
or cannot
complete job
tasks
LITERATURE REVIEW
Bell (2010) also describes the steps a supervisor
should take when an employee has declining
performance, which includes
•documenting the poor performance,
•helping the employee visualize the problem (and consequences)
•helping the employee to feel relief by asking what the supervisor can do
to help
•and by referring the employee to an Employee Assistance Program, if
necessary and available (p. 5)
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
One on one meeting with Donna
•Because of disastrous previous meeting, Donna would
doubtfully be willing to listen to Jim
Address Board of Trustees
•Lay out criticism and documentation of Donna’s absenteeism
and declining performance
•Hold second discussion with Donna
Address Board of Trustees as in second approach
•Include a third party mediator in discussion with Donna
•Jim would apologize to Donna for his mishandling of the
situation
•They would then be able to discuss their expectations
12
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
Central to all possible solutions
•Formally document problem behaviors and the poor
performance of “…negative employees (you will need dates,
times, and behaviors to counter their entrenched position as
popular incumbent)” (Gordon, 2005, p.78).
•Second meeting with Donna
Several options for moving forward
•Jim’s four solutions presented in the case study
•Agree on the level of outside activity
•Temporarily relinquish administrative responsibilities
•Switch to part-time position
•Take a leave of absence
•Other options include a “flexible schedule, reduced workload or
temporary reassignment…” (Tyler, 2003, p. 58).
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SOLUTION
Jim apologizes to Donna for how he made
her feel during their last meeting
New meeting where third unbiased party is
present
Library offers to host MADD related
programming
Jim & Donna set benchmarks to be met. If
not met they can reevaluate Donna's job
description.
POSSIBLE REACTIONS
Everyone ends up happy
•Donna slowly returns to her
former ways
•The colleagues receive counseling
for dealing with grief in the
workplace
•The library gets good press for
their involvement with the MADD
activities
Jim gets removed from the
situation
•before a meeting is even able to
take place, the board removes
Jim from the situation or from the
job entirely
POSSIBLE REACTIONS
•She quits
•The library receives
bad media for looking
unsympathetic towards
Donna's loss
•She does poor work at
the library until she is
fired
•She retaliates with
negative campaigning
towards the director
and he gets fired
•She quits knowing that
she cannot return to
her former way of life
and does not want to
hurt the library
Donna feels
attacked
Donna gets
even
Donna feels
defeated
REFERENCES
 B e l l , R . I . ( J a n u a r y 01 , 2 01 0 ) . A t h r e e - s te p p r o c e s s to s av e t r o ub l e d e m p l oye e s f r o m
t h e m s e l ve s . S u p e r v i s i o n , 71 , 1 1 , 3 .
 E i s a g ui r r e , L . ( 2 0 0 9 ) . “ We n e e d to t a l k ” to u g h c o nv e r s a t io n s w i t h yo ur e m p l oye e :
Fr o m p e r f o r ma n c e r ev i ew s to te r m i n a t io n s t a c kl e a ny to p i c w i t h s e n s i t i v i t y a n d
s m a r t s . Av o n , M A : A d a m s M e d i a . ( T h i s c i t a t io n i s f r o m t h e a c t u a l b o o k t h a t I h av e ,
I ’ m n o t s u r e w hy i t w a s c h a n g e d .)
 G i b s o n , J . , G a l l a g h e r, M . , & J e n k i n s , M . ( J a n u a r y 01 , 2 01 0 ) . T h e ex p e r i e n c e s o f
parents
r e a d j us t i n g to t h e w o r k p l ac e f o l l ow in g t h e d e a t h o f a c h i l d b y
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 G o r d o n , R . S . ( 2 0 0 4 ) . T h e a c c i d en t al l i b r a r y m a n a g e r. M e d f o r d , N . J : I n f o r m a t io n
To d ay.
 H a z e n , M . A . ( O c to b e r 01 , 2 0 0 9 ) . Re c o g n i z i n g a n d r e s p o n d in g to w o r k p l a c e g r i e f .
O r g a n i z a t io n a l D y n am i c s , 3 8 , 4 , 2 9 0 - 2 9 6 . Ret r i eve d f r o m A c a d em i c O n e F i l e o n
M a r c h 16 , 2 01 3
 Ty l e r, K . ( J a n u a r y 01 , 2 0 0 3 ) . E M P LOY E E R E L AT IO N S - H e l p i n g e m p l oye e s c o p e w i t h
g r i ef - H R c a n h e l p e m p l oye e s r e c ove r f r o m g r i e f a f te r a l o ve d o n e d i e s s u d d e n l y.
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