Besides your spouse and children, if you have any, are there any other parties who should know about your divorce?
This question does not have a one-size-fits-all answer. But it may be beneficial to let other people know you are going through a divorce, including your employer.
Divorce may affect your work
While you may want to keep your divorce private, it can affect your work. You may find it challenging to complete tasks as you did before or may need to leave the office during work hours to attend mediation or court sessions or take divorce-related calls. Going through this experience without your employer’s knowledge can be difficult. When your boss is informed about your divorce, they can potentially create a schedule that allows you to handle the process without experiencing burnout, or at least grant you a little grace when needed.
Changing information
After your divorce, you may want to change the information that your employer has related to your circumstances, primarily for tax purposes. Your name, address and so on may need to be adjusted. Your employer will require an explanation since they will be making the modifications on legal papers. Accordingly, you will likely need to inform them about your divorce.
What should you tell your employer?
Although the above-discussed instances illustrate that it may be necessary to inform your boss about your divorce, you only need to offer minimal details. They don’t need to know the reason behind the divorce. All you have to tell them is you are going through a divorce, the help you may need from them and the steps you will take to ensure the divorce does not affect your performance significantly.
Your divorce may involve more parties than you expected. But it’s possible to keep some aspects of it private. With legal guidance, you should be able to make informed decisions about whom you should tell and to what end.
