Family-responsive policies, benefits, programs, and resources

Berkeley offers a number of paid and unpaid leave options, workload modifications, supportive programs, and other resources, designed to be responsive to the family needs of academic appointees. Read through this list to see what might apply to your situation. While some supports are available to all academic employees, others are specific to senate faculty. The Academic Personnel Office is available to consult on individual eligibility.

Policies

For new parents

If you give birth to a child you have access to paid childbearing leave. If you are a new parent (birth, foster care, adoption), you (also) have access to Pay for Family Care and Bonding leave. New parents who have held their appointment for at least one year are entitled to Active Service Modified Duties; senate faculty can (also) stop the tenure clock. More detail is provided below. 

  • Pay for Family Care and Bonding (PFCB) [links to UCOP site] (Provides 100% of salary for up to 8 weeks to bond with a new child.) Another leave option, in addition to PFCB, includes unpaid leave for longer periods of time. 

  • Childbearing and parental/family bonding leave [links to APO website] Paid and unpaid leave options for caring for new children through birth, foster care, or adoption.

  • Active Service Modified Duties [links to APO website] (Reduction of duties (typically less teaching) for one semester for parents who provide at least 50% of the care of a child. Birth mothers are entitled to two semesters.)

  • Time off the (tenure) clock [links to BMAP] (Campus can approve up to two years; one year per event) for: parents caring for a new child (newborn, adoption, foster care). Note: the tenure clock can also be stopped for a serious personal health condition or other significant circumstance or event.

For faculty with health-related family caregiving responsiblities

Leave and workload modification are also available, under certain circumstances, to academic appointees who are caring for a family member with a serious health condition.

  • Pay for Family Care and Bonding (PFCB) [links to UCOP site] (Provides 100% of salary for up to 8 weeks to care for a family member with a serious health condition (or bond with a new child, as above).) 

  • Temporary Workload Modification for health-related caregiving [links to APO website] (instead of leave, faculty can remain on full-time status but  modify their workload while managing significant health-related caregiving responsibilities (a serious health condition of the faculty member’s child, parent, spouse, or domestic partner).

Benefits

Programs

Informational resources