WP\FMLA - OFLA\OFLA Forms- OFLA Bereavement Request Form
An employee who wishes to take time off due to the death of an immediate family member should notify his or her
supervisor immediately. Bereavement leave shall be noted on the employee’s timesheet or time off request form for
Payroll, and a Bereavement Request Form (following) should be completed and submitted to the HR Department.
A) To be eligible for bereavement leave protected under the Oregon Family Medical Leave Act (OFLA), an employee
must meet the following four requirements:
1) Be employed by the college for a minimum of 180 days immediately prior to the onset of the leave; and
2) Have worked a minimum average of 25 hours per week for the 180 days immediately prior to the onset of the
leave. These are actual worked hours, and do not include sick leave, vacation, etc. per the guidelines set out
pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act (See 29 CFR §785); and
3) Have not exhausted all 12 weeks of OFLA protected leave within the past 12 months immediately prior to the
onset of the leave; and
4) Need time off due to the death of a family member as *defined in the OFLA*.
B) Under OFLA only an eligible employee may take up to two weeks of leave to deal with the death of a family member*
by:
I. Attending the funeral or alternative to a funeral of the family member
II. Making arrangements necessitated by the death of the family member
III. Grieving the death of the family member
C) The leave must be completed within 60 days of the date on which the eligible employee receives notice of the death
of a family member.
D) An employee on OFLA bereavement leave must use accrued paid time (sick and/or vacation) prior to going unpaid.
E) The employee is entitled to take multiple periods of bereavement leave concurrently or separately if more than one
family member of the employee dies during the one-year period.
F) Bereavement leave used is deducted from the employee’s overall up to 12 week OFLA entitlement, and
cannot exceed the entitlement.
G) Two or more eligible family members who are employees are allowed to take bereavement leave at the
same time for the same family member.
H) Refer to relevant collective bargaining agreement and COCC policies.
*"Family member" means the spouse, same-gender domestic partner, custodial parent, non-custodial parent, adoptive
parent, foster parent, biological parent, parent-in-law, parent of same-gender domestic partner, grandparent or
grandchild of the employee, or a person with whom the employee is or was in a relationship of in loco parentis. It also
includes the biological, adopted, foster or stepchild of an employee or the child of an employee’s same-gender domestic
partner. Additional relations may qualify as a ‘Family member’ under the relevant collective bargaining agreements.
For additional information regarding your rights and responsibilities under OFLA or the relevant collective bargaining
agreements, please contact Human Resources at 541-383-7216.
COCC Bereavement Leave Procedure