Description
Educational institutions can offer reduced duties leave to faculty and staff to enable them to balance their workload with family responsibilities. Reduced duties leave may be an option for faculty and staff who are new parents or who have other caregiving responsibilities, though care must be taken for this transition to be beneficial and fair to both faculty member and institution. For example, faculty at McMaster University in Canada must work with their departments to make alternate arrangements to cover the workload gap. At the University of Michigan in the US, faculty can reduce their teaching responsibilities, but the university expects them to continue to fulfill their other duties. The reduced workload period does not affect University of Michigan faculty members’ tenure probationary period.
In addition, some universities offer reduced duties or teaching relief to faculty members who are responsible for at least 50% of family caregiving. Faculty members who take this type of leave at these two universities generally receive relief from teaching duties for one to two semesters/terms, depending on the department. At the University of California, the leave can be taken from three months before to 12 months following the birth of a newborn or adoption of a child under age five, while Harvard University offers the leave only after birth or adoption.
Example
Harvard University’s guidelines for maternity and parental leave, including teaching relief
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