You are not obligated to tell your boss about your divorce. However, doing so might be helpful, especially since you will likely have to miss some time from work to attend mediation sessions, court dates, or counseling appointments. The better your boss understands how your situation will impact your work, the easier it will be to navigate it. Moreover, if you need assistance with your workload, you can both prepare for that now rather than having to tackle it on the fly.
That said, while it is a good idea to let your boss know about your divorce, you should leave the personal details out of it. Your boss does not need to know why you are getting a divorce or whose fault it was. Instead, your boss only needs to know how the divorce might impact your schedule and your duties.
Approaching the Conversation in a Professional Manner
When telling your boss about your divorce, it is important to keep this conversation professional. Given the personal nature of this matter, however, it is easy to get confessional. To help steer you in the right direction, we compiled a list of tips to assist you with this conversation.
Here are some tips for telling your boss about your divorce:
- Tell your boss what to anticipate: You cannot totally predict the future, but if you know any details that may help shed some light on what to expect, tell your boss about it. Maybe you are starting mediation soon or you have a court date set. If you think you will need a little extra time or understanding, be honest about it.
- Your divorce should never be an excuse: When talking about your impending divorce during this conversation or later on down the line, do not use it as an excuse for why you are not doing your job. Yes, it is a difficult experience and you deserve empathy, but you should still do your job.
- Find out if you need to change any of your paperwork: Your marital status is changing, so you will also have to make changes to certain documents, such as your tax information and health care information.
Moreover, while it might be helpful to tell your boss about your divorce, you should be more discerning about any co-workers you confide in. If everyone knows, they might regularly ask you about it, which can be distracting. If possible, try to avoid sharing too much when it comes to your divorce.
Reach Out to a Knowledgeable Divorce Attorney Today!
If you are getting a divorce, you will need an experienced attorney on your side to help you navigate the process. At The Springer Law Firm PLLC, our family law team has 85 years of collective legal experience. You can rely on our attorneys to work tirelessly on your behalf and prepare the best strategy for your divorce case.
Get started on your case today and reach out to our team at (281) 990-6025 to set up a consultation with a member of our team.