struggle to stay on task and are easily distracted. There is often an
increase in absenteeism and productivity is negatively impacted,
all to the detriment of their employer.
Separating couples’ reactions to the situation are complex and
are often dependent on their age and stage of life, the number
of children involved and their economic circumstances. Their
responses are often complicated by multi-layered emotions such
as grief and shame. For some, life returns to a new norm in a
few months, but for most the transition takes much longer. Of
course, everything is amplified when the separation is acrimoni-ous.
These types of separations thrust the couple into a vicious
cycle, in which hostility between the separating couple is a con-stant
and they feel that the only way to resolve their issues is
through litigation.
The litigation process of unravelling a marriage tends to be
lengthy, hurtful and expensive. There are alternatives to litigation
and part of the role of human resources specialists should involve
gathering and preparing resources about various experts who a
separating individual may want to turn to, including divorce medi-ators,
collaborative lawyers, social workers trained to work with
individuals experiencing this life event and divorce organizers.
Divorce organizers help individuals to gather, organize and pre-pare
all of the necessary financial paper work used to begin any
separation process.
HR should be proactive in dealing with separation and divorce
in the workplace. Even though HR may feel uncomfortable talk-ing
about it, and the employee may be embarrassed by it, it is
unrealistic to ignore the reality of the situation, which is that sepa-ration
and divorce inevitably affect a company’s bottom line. Most
organizations have policies to deal with leaves for tending to a
sick child or family member, short-term or long-term disability
and bereavement. However, the matter of separation and divorce
is largely avoided and/or ignored. After all, the topic makes
people uncomfortable.
Yet, ignoring the situation costs the company money, as employ-ees
are most likely not functioning well at work. While receiving
services from the company’s EAP firm may be a good first step, HR
can be more proactive. They can develop a plan that helps to sup-port
employees who are dealing with this life event. For example:
■■ A manager or someone from HR can meet with the employee
to discuss a manageable workload, a temporary leave or flexible
work hours.
■■ HR can compile a checklist of frequently required paperwork
changes or requirements, such as a change of address for credit
cards and a driver’s license, along with basic instructions on how
to complete the paperwork or where to go for help in this area.
■■ HR can prepare a list of experts who the employee may want
to reach out to.
Strategies such as these provide the employee with important
information and the time to deal with court appearances and
meetings with mediators, lawyers or financial advisors. Ultimately,
employers benefit by recognizing that some of their employees
will be dealing with separation and divorce. By having a plan in
place, they will be able to support the employee while minimiz-ing
the impact of reduced output and an increased workload for
other employees.
Whether it is separation and divorce following a marriage or the
uncoupling of a common-law union, this change is emotionally,
socially, legally and/or financially challenging for family members.
However, current research shows that the impact on adults and
children – including the speed and degree of adjustment – var-ies
widely and is shaped by post-divorce circumstances, access to
community programs and services, as well as the availability of
information, resources and support during the transition. The
workplace may well be the first place that recognizes the need to
offer and provide assistance and resources to individuals experi-encing
this life event. n
Edit Farun is an accredited mediator with the Ontario Association
for Family Mediation and a qualified mediator with the Alternative
Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario. Charlotte Goldfried is
a collaborative family law lawyer and founder of Goldfried Law.
Debbie Shawn is a registered social worker and founder of Divorce
Matters – Preparing for An Organized Divorce. Attend their
presentation, “Separation and Divorce are Workplace Issues: Helping
Organizations Reduce the Costs of Separation and Divorce in the
Workplace,” on Jan. 31 at 3 p.m.
hr practice
WHILE SEPARATION
AND DIVORCE ARE
CONSIDERED PERSONAL
ISSUES, EMPLOYERS
WOULD DO WELL TO
RECOGNIZE THAT THE
IMPACT OF SEPARATION
AND DIVORCE SPILLS
OVER INTO THE
WORLD OF WORK.
michaeljung / 123RF
20 ❚ CONFERENCE ISSUE 2019 ❚ HR PROFESSIONAL
/profile_michaeljung