Funeral Home Staffs

Funeral directors have so many tasks and details to attend to that they require a staff with many skills. Since the directors are usually licensed embalmers, they are primarily responsible for this function. The embalming process is very involved, requiring time and attention to detail.

To embalm a body the embalmer must first wash the body with germicidal soap. To preserve the tissues, they must then drain the blood from the body and replace it with embalming fluid. In an effort to make the body look, as much as possible, like it did in life, the embalmer must re-shape and reconstruct any disfigured body parts using various materials, such as clay, plaster of paris and wax. They then apply cosmetics and sometimes wigs. Finally, they dress the body and place it in the casket.

To achieve this for all of the customers that desire embalming, funeral directors keep a staff of embalmers and sometimes several apprentices. These apprentices will get the training required to get licensed. The embalming staff helps to free the director to oversee the many other areas of the business.

A Specialized Staff

The funeral home is a specialized business, with specialized staffing needs. For example, if the funeral home also has cremation facilities, the director must hire crematory technicians. And funeral homes often offer grief counseling. Those that do may keep a grief therapist on staff.