Death of a Family Member, Employee, or Retiree

Applicable Paid Time Off

Absence from work may be allowed with full pay depending on your appointment and your relationship to the deceased. Please refer to the funeral leave information for details.

Benefit Changes

If you have been covered as a dependent on a spouse or parent plan, and your loved one passes away, you may need to enroll in a University-sponsored plan. You will make a request to add your University-sponsored benefit plan(s) within Workday. If you need assistance with this process, please contact Penn State HR Services at 1-814-865-1473.

Please notify Penn State Employee Benefits of your dependent’s passing by contacting Penn State HR Services 1-814-865-1473. With notification of the dependent’s passing, Penn State Employee Benefits will review for enrollment in spousal life or child life and process removal of the dependent from your benefit coverage. Removal of the dependent from your benefit coverage will also remove the deceased dependent as a beneficiary.

You may also need to change your basic and option life insurance, accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D), health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), and/or retirement plan beneficiary.

Beneficiary changes for life insurance and AD&D coverage is completed within Workday
Contact HealthEquity at 1-866-346-5800 to update beneficiary information for the HSA or FSA
Contact the respective retirement plan to change beneficiary information for your retirement plan
- State Employees Retirement System (SERS): 1-800-633-5461
- Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS): 1-888-773-7748
- Penn State Alternate Retirement Plan (TIAA): 1-800-842-2252

Some benefits require that you make changes within 31 days of the event to avoid waiting periods for coverage.

SupportLinc Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

SupportLinc is Penn State's Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and provides free and confidential counseling on a wide variety of topics to help adjust to life changes, including support for grief and loss.

SupportLinc's resources are available at no cost to full-time, benefits-eligible Penn State employee, Postdoctoral appointees, their spouse and dependents, as well as members of their household. Employees and their family members can contact SupportLinc online (first-time visitors will need to set up an account), group code: pennstate, or call 1-888-501-3532. You can learn more regarding Penn State's SupportLinc benefits, which include a SupportLinc Grief and Loss Toolkit with valuable digital tools to help support you and your family with the loss of a loved one. The toolkit provides knowledge, support, and the right resources to help understand emotions, ways to cope, and ultimately a way to live with grief moving forward.

Beneficiaries of Penn State Employees

If you are a beneficiary or family member of a Penn State employee/retiree who has passed away, you should contact the Penn State HR Services at 1-814-865-1473. Their team can get you started with information regarding your loved one’s benefits:

Active Employee Benefits – medical, dental, vision, life insurance, accidental death & dismemberment, final pay, vacation pay, and flexible spending accounts. This will also begin the process for review of potential retiree coverage for surviving eligible dependents.

Retiree Benefits – medical and/or life insurance. This will also begin the process for review of potential continuation of medical coverage for surviving eligible dependents.

Please note that for the family of a loved one who has passed away, the family will need to report the death directly to the applicable retirement plan that the employee or retiree participated in. Phone numbers are listed below:

State Employees Retirement System (SERS): 1-800-633-5461
Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS): 1-888-773-7748
Penn State Alternate Retirement Plan (TIAA): 1-800-842-2252