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You may have caught a story in yesterday’s Free Press about how employees at Red River College Polytechnic will now be able to take paid time off to mourn non-blood people in their lives who are like family.
I’m very proud of my alma mater for this initiative, which is part of a reconciliation-forward approach to contract talks, according to Maggie’s story.
“There’s a Western view that your family is who you’re related to by blood and that’s all — and that’s not how it works, at least not in my community,” said Monica Lytwyn, co-chair of RRC Polytech’s truth and reconciliation working group and a member of Norway House Cree Nation.
Red River College Polytechnic (Wayne Glowacki / Free Press files)
This is something I believe strongly as well, and more workplaces would do well to follow suit. It has always been wild to me that I wouldn’t get bereavement days for my best friend — or that, under some contracts, my niece (who is related by blood to my husband) would not be able to take bereavement days for me, her aunt.
Some blood-related relatives are also excluded under some contracts. Previously, RRC Polytech employees could only access five days of paid leave to mourn the death of a parent, spouse or child.
Families look different in 2026, and workplaces shouldn’t dictate who is important to someone. People have all kinds of relationships that are deeply meaningful to them and shape who they are, and sometimes those chosen-family ties are stronger than blood. Especially for people who have been estranged from their blood relatives, for whatever reason.
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And yes, taking unpaid leave might be possible, but even if that option is available, it’s not always tenable. Neither, though, is pushing through grief at work.
But that’s the cultural expectation, isn’t it? North Americans don’t like talking about death, which makes the contours of grief fuzzy and poorly understood. I’ve even heard bereavement time framed as “days off” people “get,” which is so crass. No one wants to take bereavement days.
From a workplace perspective, giving your employees some space to mourn not only recognizes their humanity, it’s also a smart talent recruitment and retention strategy. People stay at places where they feel valued. Acknowledgement of their lives outside of the office is one way to demonstrate that.
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