People Manager’s guide to managing death in service April 2016
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Internal, People Manager’s guide to managing death in service Page 1 of 6 April 2016
Unfortunately, with such a large workforce there are occasions when our colleagues pass away whilst they are still working for Tesco. This is a sad situation requiring professionalism as well as empathy, sensitivity and compassion, as it can be daunting to have conversations with family members who are grieving. However, you can help the family by quickly and efficiently giving them vital financial and benefit information which will ease their immediate concerns about how to manage financially. This Guide will help you to support the manager, the family and the colleagues of the deceased person. It outlines what steps to take when you hear of a colleague’s death, from contacting the family, to organising flowers, and also what happens to the colleague’s outstanding pay and benefits.
1. It is your role as the People Manager to act as the central contact point for the family/next of kin and to the other areas in Tesco, as well as supporting the colleague’s immediate manager and colleagues. In summary, you need to:
Notify relevant people and departments of the colleague’s death. Send a personal letter of condolence to the next of kin from the store/distribution centre/office department. Speak to the next of kin to offer condolences, and to obtain details of the funeral. Communicate details of the funeral to the relevant senior managers and colleagues so they can attend and/or send personal flowers. Arrange for a condolence letter to be sent on behalf of the Company from the Board. Organise flowers to arrive for the funeral or a donation to charity to be made (as per the next of kin’s wishes). Give or send a letter to the next of kin outlining details of the colleague’s benefits and contact details of the relevant departments in Tesco who they can speak to. Contact and respond to any questions from the next of kin.
You can find more details about how to do each of these activities throughout this guide, and a copy of a detailed checklist to help you manage this by clicking here.
2. Senior Managers who need to know
Your WL4 Director Your Regional People Manager or People Director in the office Group/Stream People Manager in stores or distribution centres.
Colleagues Consider carefully how you will do this sensitively - you could use any of the following methods, or a combination, but it’s important you do this reasonably quickly:
One to one with colleagues who you know were close to the individual. Small Team 5 or Huddle; Email to large groups. This should be a personal and sensitive communication.
Remember that people react in different ways and it will hit some people much harder than others. As a result of this news some colleagues may need some time to deal with it and so you should consider allowing some reasonable time off to grieve. The bereavement policy may be applicable for very close colleagues. If colleagues are particularly upset you could suggest that the colleague contacts the Grocery Aid Helpline, which provides free counselling. The Helpline is available seven days a week and is open to all who work in the grocery industry, and it can be accessed online at www.groceryaid.org.uk or by calling freephone: 08088 021122. You should also consider the cause of death in order to assess what impact it may have, for example, was the colleague off with a long term sickness or was it sudden? This will help you support colleagues in the appropriate Internal, People Manager’s guide to managing death in service Page 2 of 6 April 2016
way. It may be that the family wishes the circumstances of the death to be kept confidential, and if that is the case you should respect their wishes and not inform colleagues of the cause of death if you know it. Consider whether the colleague had any external contacts (such as suppliers) that it may be appropriate to inform. Departments who need to know (depending on benefits received)
Privilegecard: Please email:
[email protected] giving the colleague’s name, address, and employee number as well as the name of the colleague’s partner if applicable. Pension: You should contact the Pensions department immediately by calling 0345 070 1113 – Option 2. Shareschemes: Please contact Equiniti (our Registrars) on: 0871 384 2976 Union: If the individual was a Union member, please contact your local Area Organiser. You can find your local Usdaw office online at: https://www.usdaw.org.uk/Contact-Us/Usdaw-Offices Childcare Vouchers: Please contact Grass Roots (care-4) on: 0844 800 1444 or email:
[email protected] Tesco Healthcare Trust (company funded private healthcare): Please email Occupational Health:
[email protected] Simply Health: Please contact 0370 908 3487 or email:
[email protected] Cycle Scheme: Please email:
[email protected]
3. Picking up the phone to contact the next of kin can be intimidating, but it will help if you focus on your role to help them as much as possible, as well as remaining compassionate and caring. Try to ring at a time when you will not be disturbed, and when you have sufficient time to devote to the call. The next of kin’s wishes should guide our response at all stages. It is essential that one person acts as the main contact point as this provides the family with reassurance that they do not need to keep repeating the same information to different people, which can be distressing. The main point of contact could be the colleague’s manager rather than you, if they have had contact with the family in the past. Speaking to someone they know in the business where possible will usually be easier for the family. After the initial contact over the phone it may be appropriate for you and their manager to arrange a date and time to visit the next of kin at home, so that you can offer your condolences, find out their wishes, and let them know what will happen going forward with the colleague’s pay and benefits, rather than phoning them again or sending a letter through the post. However, this will depend on what the next of kin wants, and what feels appropriate in the circumstances. There are occasions where the next of kin information we hold is not up-to-date, or the situation is not straightforward as relationships may have changed or broken down. In these situations we should not send the Next of Kin Benefits letter, and should leave it for the Executor of the colleague’s Will to determine.
4. Whilst it is not an easy subject, please discuss the following issues with the colleague’s next of kin, or another family member:
Confirm the date the colleague died; Discuss whether they’re happy for the colleague’s work colleagues to make contact (for example sending a card or flowers), and also if they’re happy for them to attend the funeral. Ask about the funeral arrangements, discuss who would like to attend from Tesco, and what the dress code is. Ask whether flowers or a donation to a charity/crowdfunding is preferred. Ask what they want you to do with any personal belongings you may have found. If they want them, offer to take them to the next of kin. If the colleague had a personal locker you could ask if they would like to clear it out, or if they are happy for you to do so. Ask if there is any Tesco property the colleague may have at home that they want collecting, for example, laptop, phone, security passes, and uniform. Internal, People Manager’s guide to managing death in service Page 3 of 6 April 2016
Let them know about what will happen with the colleague’s pay and benefits (as per the following section). You should ask them if they would prefer to do this at another time (such as after the funeral).
Make sure they have your contact details.
5. Salary The colleague is paid for the full week in which they died, plus any outstanding current, accrued, and bank holiday entitlement (the Personal day is not paid in lieu). Usually the bank will "freeze" their bank account and therefore their final pay should normally be paid to the colleague’s next of kin. The next of kin needs to sign a Declaration form and provide us with bank account details in order to do this. The Declaration form can be found here and it protects Tesco in the event that someone else contests the payment of the final salary to the next of kin. If the next of kin is not straightforward the money will need to be held until a legal process has determined where the money should be paid. You will need to see proof of next of kin which is usually in the form of the letter of probate (or letter of confirmation in Scotland) or a letter of administration. Please explain to the next of kin that although we will not send a P45 through to them (as this is sent to HMRC), they may be sent a form called a P11D at the end of the tax year informing them of any taxable benefits that our colleague received. This is likely to be sent in the June following the colleague’s death, but this could obviously be some time after the colleague died. Letting the next of kin know what to expect could help alleviate any potential upset. Save As You Earn The Executors have 12 months from the date of death to purchase shares at the option price, with the money accumulated in the Save As You Earn account, or the beneficiary can have the savings. (Interest is only payable if the Save As You Earn has been operating for more than 1 year). Buy As You Earn and Shares in Success The colleague’s shares will be transferred out of Trust and into the colleague’s Estate. There will be no income tax or National Insurance Contributions to pay on the shares, regardless of how long they have been held in Trust. For Shares in Success: If a colleague dies between the end of the financial year and the appropriation date, there will not be an award of shares, but an award will be made in cash instead. 2012 Cash Bonus If the colleague hasn’t already received their cash bonus, the colleague’s Estate will receive 3.6% of the colleague’s earnings in either the 2011/12 or 2014/15 financial year (whichever is greater), grossed up so that income tax is paid on their behalf (national insurance contributions are not required in these circumstances). 2016 Turnaround Bonus If the colleague dies before the 23rd May 2016, the next of kin will receive a cash equivalent payment in July. If the colleague dies on or after the 23rd May, the shares have been released to the colleague and the next of kin will need to contact Equinity Executive Share Schemes The Shares team will contact the next of kin a couple of months after the colleague’s death in order to explain the Schemes and the options available to them. If you need any information in the meantime, please contact Equiniti on: 0871 384 2976 Privilegecard If the colleague had a partner that lived with them, they will be given a card for 1 year. If the colleague’s age plus service equals or is greater than 80 on death (and they have a minimum of 5 years’ service), or if the colleague had at least 30 years’ service, the bereaved partner will keep the card for life. Internal, People Manager’s guide to managing death in service Page 4 of 6 April 2016
Tesco Retirement Savings Plan/Pension and Life Assurance If the colleague was a member of the Tesco Retirement Savings Plan, there is a life assurance payment payable worth 5 years' contractual earnings. If the deceased colleague was not a member of the Plan there is a life assurance payment payable worth 1 year’s contractual earnings. The Pensions department will contact the next of kin (or Executor of the Estate) within the first few weeks to discuss the death benefits payable from the Retirement Savings Plan and/or the closed defined benefit pension scheme. Childcare Vouchers Once Grass Roots are notified of the colleague’s death they will immediately de-activate the account and a note added to account screen so that anyone accessing the account is aware of the situation. The balance in the colleague’s care-4 account can either be returned to Tesco to process through the colleague’s final salary, or they can remain in a care-4 account for the family to use to pay for childcare. Grass Roots need to be given authorisation by Tesco to take instructions from a family member to make payments to a carer with the remaining funds. Tesco Healthcare Trust (company funded private healthcare) Dependents that were in the scheme when the colleague died will remain in the scheme for two months from the date of death. Occupational Health will send a letter to the next of kin advising of the end date of company funded cover for dependents, and advice on how the dependents can take out cover privately with the Tesco scheme provider. Simply Health: health cash plan, dental plan (voluntary scheme funded by the colleague) Once you have told Simply Health of the colleague’s death, the policy will be cancelled and they will write to any dependents included in the policy. Usdaw Funeral Grant If the colleague was a paid up member of Usdaw, there will be a funeral grant available for the next of kin. Please notify the local Usdaw office of the colleague’s death. The local office will then arrange payment of the funeral grant to the next of kin and close the colleague’s membership.
6. Flowers can be ordered up to the value of £50 through the Floral Tributes Process, which will be charged to the individual cost centre. The flowers should be ordered in time for the funeral. Stores (including Customer Fulfilment Centres) process: search for ‘floral tributes’ on the Click to Order system, and you will find a choice of options. Distribution/Office/Customer Engagement Centre: order flowers via I-Procurement (Oracle). (Access to IProcurement can be obtained by completing the new user form on the Hub.) Follow the IPROC link, and then click on ‘floral tributes for staff’. Alternatively email:
[email protected] Donations to charity or a crowdfunding arrangement to the value of £50 can be arranged instead of flowers if the next of kin prefers. Please email:
[email protected] to request this payment.
7. Stores (including Customer Fulfilment Centres): You should complete a form ‘Bereavement letter request’ on MyActions to request a letter to be sent on behalf of the Chairman, Directors and Colleagues of Tesco. The form Internal, People Manager’s guide to managing death in service Page 5 of 6 April 2016
will be copied to your Regional People Manager. Distribution: You should email: Andrew Woolfenden, his PA Jenny D. Edwards, and Sharon Tollett, requesting a bereavement letter to be sent on behalf of the Chairman, Directors and Colleagues of Tesco. Office (including Customer Engagement Centres): You (People Business Partner/Advisor) should prepare the bereavement letter (available on the Hub) and send to your relevant Work Level 6 to sign on behalf of the company.
8. Distribution and Office functions can access the letters on the Hub (People Policies and Processes) Stores can access the letters on the G drive (under Personnel, Policies for our People Letters, Death in Service)
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