Death and Grief-How to Cope in the Workplace

Spending most of your time with an extended family outside the home is one of the realities that people face today. With some workers’ waking hours mostly spent at work than at home, it is not surprising how the demise of a colleague can significantly affect the performance of employees. Grief can compromise productivity and workplace dynamics in ways you never imagined. In fact, an Accidental Death can evoke a traumatic feeling from the survivors.

Every person has a unique response to a bad experience. When grieving, one may feel all sorts of feelings. This could include loss of confidence, depression, tension, anger, guilt, irritability, mistrust, fear, anxiety, betrayal, and sadness. Also, physical symptoms may also involve poor concentration, absentmindedness, restlessness, increased alcohol or drug use, changes in appetite, fatigue, insomnia, headaches, and abdominal pain. In one way or another, all these significantly impact on the workers’ ability to function.

Of course, the company cannot afford its operations to be hampered. Production cannot be halted or else sales and services would be compromised. For business to go on as usual, employers should make efforts to help the people deal with the loss. Here are some effective ways to go about it.

1. Give the person some room to grieve his or her way. Permit a bereavement leave so that he or she can recover fast from the experience. On the other hand, if working seems therapeutic, keep the workload as is. However, ease it a bit when you believe it is needed.
2. Understand that the mood of the person may be changeable. Intense feelings may be let loose when triggered by a certain incident, sometimes beyond the control of the person concerned.
3. Do not be surprised to see tears now and then. This is a normal phase that must be endured, so expect occasional bursts of emotion.
4. Avoid being judgmental and demand the same from everyone else. There are times when the process is delayed. In the meantime, the person plays dumb for weeks or months. So, watch out for the telltale signs of a grieving employee.