ABSTRACT
Most managers and other people at work do not expect to deal with bereavement or terminal illness as part of the ‘day job’. It may not crop up for years, but when it does, it can hit home all too suddenly. The manager can feel that it is hardly part of the job description, training or experience and can consequently feel out of their depth. Alternatively and even worse, they may have no idea of the degree to which they are putting their foot in it. For the person or people affected, this is likely to be a crucial time in their lives at which they plumb depths of possibly unfamiliar, profound and probably painful feelings and experiences. Helping to provide good support is the intention of this book, so that we are no longer at a loss over grief in the workplace; but the rationale for this cannot be taken for granted.
