Parental Leave for Faculty: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Parental leave is time taken off from work by an employee following the birth of an employee’s child or the placement of a child with an employee in connection with adoption or foster care. The purpose of parental leave is to enable the employee to care for and bond with a newborn or a newly adopted or newly placed child.

Most likely yes. If you would like to double check based on your circumstances, please email: benefits@uml.edu to discuss your specific circumstances.

Most likely yes. If you would like to double check based on your circumstances, please email: benefits@uml.edu to discuss your specific circumstances.

Most likely yes. If you would like to double check based on your circumstances, please email: benefits@uml.edu to discuss your specific circumstances.

Most likely yes. However, there may be limits on taking more than one leave per year. Please email: benefits@uml.edu to discuss your specific circumstances.

Since the process for requesting leave may vary with the specific circumstances of the person making the request, please email: benefits@uml.edu to get started. They can provide guidance on the options available to you and the paperwork involved.

Under Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) rules, it is recommended that people provide 30 days’ notice prior to the start date of the leave. The timing of some leaves may difficult to plan (e.g., early birth, adoption with short time horizon, unexpected medical complications, etc.). If 30 days’ notice is not possible for whatever reason, please still please email: benefits@uml.edu to discuss your specific circumstances to see what is possible.

Planned leaves for faculty generally start at the beginning of a semester. Please refer to the MSP Contract (Article XX, section B.2-5, on pages 149-151) for additional details on the structure of planned Faculty Parental Leave. Unplanned leaves may not correspond to the beginning of a semester, and please email: benefits@uml.edu for options.

The Massachusetts Society of Professors (MSP) contract (Article XX, section B.3) states “During that semester which shall be the semester in which the child’s birth or adoption occurs or an adjacent semester”. Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) allows parents to take leave within 1 year after the birth or adoption of a child. The PFML website states that “Bonding with your child during the first 12 months after birth, adoption, or placement” is a qualifying event.

Per the MSP Contract, a faculty member can take an entire semester off, if the leave starts at the beginning of a semester (i.e., not ½ of two separate semesters). The MSP contract states: “Full-time faculty … shall receive, upon request, up to a one semester paid leave.” (Note: the leave is paid for by accrued sick time.)

As part of the semester, 12 weeks of the leave works in conjunction with FMLA. The maximum allowed period is determined by federal and state mandates, the MSP contract, and your specific circumstances.

Yes, during a leave, you are paid using your own available sick time; the MSP contract states (Article XX, section B.3, page 150) “…, the faculty member or librarian shall be required to use their accrued sick leave”. Although it is not generally a strict day-to-day match (of sick time to days of leave taken), parental leave taken under the MSP contract is substantially paid for from your personal sick time. For more information about your specific situation, please please email: benefits@uml.edu.

If you run out of personal sick time, you may be eligible to use the Faculty Sick Leave Bank.

If you do not wish to use your available accrued sick time under the university, you can apply for pay benefits under Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML). The Department of PFML determines eligibility and approval of benefits under the program. Please refer to the state of Massachusetts's Department of Family and Medical Leave page for more information.

Be aware, however, that PFML does not usually cover the full 16 weeks of a typical semester, and it may pay out at a different rate than your full salary. It is recommended to consider these factors when applying for leave under PFML.

If you run out of sick time and you are not a member of the Faculty Sick Leave Bank or you are a member of the bank but use of the Faculty Sick Leave Bank is suspended, the remainder of your leave will be coded as “No Pay” (meaning that you will not be paid for that time). If you believe a portion of your leave will be “No Pay,” please refer to the state of Massachusetts's Department of Family and Medical Leave website and file an application for consideration of pay benefits under PFML.

Access to FMLA is typically automatic. Once the employee has complied with the leave of absence process and is approved for leave, as part of the approval, the leave is designated under FMLA. The criteria for eligibility for FMLA is available on the U.S. Department of Labor's website.

PFML is a personal choice by the employee. An employee who is on leave and does not wish to receive pay benefits using their available accrued sick time with the university can choose to opt instead for pay benefits under the Dept. of PFML. The Dept. of PFML determines eligibility and approval of benefits under the program. Please refer to the state of Massachusetts's Department of Family and Medical Leave website.

To better understand issues that can emerge if combining PFML and use of sick time, please please email: benefits@uml.edu.

The MSP contract refers to the interaction of tenure timelines and parental leaves in two locations.

The first reference is in Article VIII, section A.1, page 44; the second reference is in Article XX, section B.5, page 151: “A faculty member may receive a tenure delay for up to two parental leaves. Should a faculty member not wish the tenure delay, they have up to a year from their return to campus to opt-out of the delay”.

When an employee is out on an approved full leave of absence, the employee is not expected to work.

In most cases, there is no minimum employment time for unpaid leave, but an employee should contact the UML Benefits Office to review their leave timeframe, eligibility, benefits available and all applicable rules.

For paid leave, the relevant language in Article XX, section B.3 (page 150 of MSP contract) is: “Bargaining unit members who start employment at the University on or after September 1, 2015 shall be eligible for leave under this section only after employed by the University for 1 full year and shall be required to return to the University, following such leave, for a period equal to twice the length of the granted parental/adoptive leave or shall be required to repay the University for salary paid during leave.”

Benefit Strategies, which runs employees’ DCAP program, explains that that the birth, adoption, or placement of a child is considered a qualifying life event in order to enroll into the HCSA/DCAP or both. An enrollment request should be placed within 60 calendar days of the qualifying event. However, denials of DCAP enrollments have occurred if submitted once parental leave has started. This situation may be avoided by enrolling in DCAP prior to the initiation of parental leave.