Employee Took 13 Weeks Off for Miscarriages in One Year So I Changed Our Entire Policy
The original poster (OP) works in an environment where an employee, who recently experienced a miscarriage nine days prior and took a week of bereavement leave, announced a new pregnancy immediately upon returning to work.
The OP questioned this, as the employee stated the new conception occurred the night before returning, implying the loss of the new fetus after only three days of gestation.
This situation is part of a larger pattern, as the employee has reportedly experienced the loss of thirteen unborn children in similar short durations throughout 2024, resulting in the use of thirteen weeks of paid time off, in addition to vacation and personal days.
Faced with updating the company's bereavement policy to require documentation, the OP decided to reject the standard procedure, leading to a dilemma regarding how to proceed with policy enforcement.
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The poster is currently wrestling with the administrative challenge posed by an employee whose pattern of reported pregnancy losses appears highly unusual and potentially exploitative of company policy, creating a conflict between es**blished HR procedures and the need to address an outlier situation.
The central question is whether the OP is wrong for deciding to enforce stricter documentation requirements for bereavement leave in response to this specific pattern, or if the need to maintain policy integrity for all employees overrides the potential impact on this individual?
When the Crowd Speaks, It Echoes Loudly:
The thread exploded with reactions. Whether agreeing or disagreeing, everyone had something to say — and they said it loud.