TITLE: Death of an Employee

NUMBER: HUM110

EFFECTIVE: 15 OCT 2012

REVIEWED: 24 MAR 2015

PURPOSE

The purpose is to provide guidelines to be followed in the event of death involving an employee of the Institute for Public Service.

This applies to all Institute for Public Service Employees.

PROCEDURES

Duties and Responsibilities of the employee’s agency

1. Gather information on the employee as to the nature of the incident, location of the employee, emergency notification of family, family member to contact, phone number, etc.
2. Notify the agency director and the employee’s supervisor. The agency director will notify the IPS Vice President, IPS Assistant Vice President, and the IPS HR Manager.
3. The agency director should put out a general notice (email) to agency employees concerning the incident involving the employee. The agency director should be aware of HIPPA rules and should not give out medical information on the employee. Also the notice should be sensitive to the family of the employee.
4. The agency should designate an employee to act as the liaison with the family during the time of need to assist the family with immediate personal needs (i.e. transportation, food, helping with personal needs of the family). The liaison should be someone who is close to the employee or knows the family.
5. The agency should work with the liaison and/or Employee Relations to deliver personal effects to the family. In addition, the liaison will work with the family to return work related materials to the agency (i.e. keys, ID card, computer, camera, projector, vehicle, etc.) These items must be turned in to the agency HR person so that the final release of pay form can be completed and turned in to UT.
6. All questions regarding death benefits will be referred to the University of Tennessee, Employee Relations Office, Knoxville (1‐888‐444‐8847).
7. The agency director should contact the Employee Assistance Program to determine when counseling may be available to employees (co‐workers). Co‐workers should be encouraged to take advantage of the counseling.
8. The employee’s supervisor and/or the agency director should close off the employee’s office until such time as an inventory of items can be made. Personal items should be packed up and returned to the family within a reasonable amount of time. If work related items are needed from the office, the supervisor should be the appropriate person to retrieve said items from the office. Employees should not be allowed to go through the office.
9. The agency director may direct the IT office to direct emails and mail to a designated person in the office to handle follow‐up with customers, check calendars for obligations, and notification to customers.
10. The agency will process termination e‐form indicating “death” as the reason for termination.

Duties and Responsibilities of the IPS Central Office

1. The agency director shall notify the Vice President of IPS and the Assistant Vice President of IPS.
2. The Vice President will put out appropriate information to other employees of IPS (agencies other than the employee’s agency).
3. The IPS Manager of Human Resources will notify the Office of Employee Relations of an employee death and provide general information known at that time. This would include a liaison person at the agency and next of kin if available. Documentation that needs to be completed will be forwarded to the employee’s agency. Upon return of the documentation, the Manager of HR for IPS will send documentation to the Employee Relations Office.
4. The Manager of HR will assist the agency with contact information for the Employee Assistance Program.
5. The IPS Information Specialist will prepare a memoriam article for the Exchange.
6. Remove the employee from internal mailing lists, etc. So that the family does not get materials later.

Duties and Responsibilities of the UT HR Employee Relations Office

1. The Employee Relations Office should be notified immediately of the death of an employee and provided with as much information as is known at the time.
2. The Employee Relations Office will contact the Retirement and Benefits Office to coordinate benefit information and relay that information to the family.
3. The Employee Relations Office will send the completed Final Pay Computation form for signature.
4. All information regarding benefits should be referred to the Employee Relations Office at 1‐888444‐8847.

Related Policies:

HR 0310 [Replaced by HR0307] ‐ Benefit in the Event of an Employee Death

UTK policy, Section 300, Proc. 307 Benefit in the Event of an Employee Death

Forms:

Designation of Beneficiary Form

Final Pay Computation Due to Death