Leaves

Professors and associate professors at YSM are eligible to apply for Sabbatical and Triennial Leaves after two years of full-time activity at those stated ranks. Such leaves are for the purposes of research or to allow faculty to benefit from professional opportunities that necessitate a limited time away from their normal duties. Details about leaves are covered in the Yale University Faculty Handbook. Policy Tech has further information about the process. For department administrators, additional information can be found on the YSM Finance Policies and Procedures webpage.

Sabbatical and triennial leaves are a privilege and not a right. At YSM, a triennial leave may up to four months in length and a sabbatical leave may be up to 12 months, dependent on departmental policies. A leave will generally only be granted if the department chair and dean are in agreement and assured that the leave will not have adverse effects on the department’s, program’s, or school’s teaching, research program, or clinical or administrative responsibilities.

For subsequent leaves, faculty may apply to take a triennial leave 2 ½ years after the end of their previous leave, or a sabbatical leave 6 years after the end of their previous leave, regardless of the type of leave they previously took. For future leave eligibility purposes, the end date of a sabbatical is always calculated as June 30th. The end date of a triennial is calculated as December 31st if the leave ended between July 1st and December 31st, and is calculated as June 30th if the leave ended between January 1st and June 30th.

Faculty considering sabbatical or triennial leaves are encouraged to discuss considerations with leadership in their department. Faculty Affairs Department Teams can be of great help. This can be very helpful to review possible plans, understand departmental considerations, and receive process-related guidance related to the on-line submission process.

A member of the faculty with a primary appointment at the YSM, and who are working at least half-time (percent work effort of 50% or more), who becomes a parent of a newborn child or newly adopted child under the age of six is eligible for Child-Rearing Leave. Such leaves cover mothers, fathers, and adoptive parents and must be taken within the first year after the birth or adoption for the purpose of the child’s care.

To request a child rearing leave, please complete the Child Rearing Leave Request form and submit the completed form to your departmental faculty affairs coordinator. Questions about Child Rearing leaves can be directed to departmental faculty affairs staff, or to the central Yale School of Medicine resource, YSM Academic Analytics.

Please note that Childcare resources are delineated on the OAPD Benefits resource page.

Paid Child Rearing Leave

The paid Child Rearing Leave is a “relief package” from clinical, research, teaching, and administrative responsibilities which provides for salary continuation for 12 weeks to eligible faculty. Of note, faculty are not expected and should not feel obligated to compress clinical coverage or other duties into the period before or after Child Rearing Leave.

A paid Child Rearing Leave may commence at any time from two weeks before the expected time of delivery or adoption until the first year after the birth or adoption for the child’s care. During the paid Child Rearing Leave, the faculty member shall continue to receive their usual salary and fringe benefits. Upon return from Leave, the faculty member is entitled to reinstatement in the position held prior to going on leave, or to one substantially similar, with no loss of seniority benefits or other privileges of employment.

In addition, the University has a short–term disability policy that applies to medical issues, including medical issues that may arise as a result of a faculty member's pregnancy. The current child rearing policy does not replace or change eligibility for short–term medical disability.

If both parents are eligible faculty members, each are independently entitled to a paid Child Rearing Leave and/or the option for an additional eight weeks paid part-time status with pay commensurate with percent effort. The leaves for both parents may be taken during the same or differing periods at any time from two weeks before the expected time of delivery or adoption until the first year after the birth or adoption for the child’s care.

Extension of Paid Child Rearing Leave

The paid Child Rearing Leave also provides an option for an additional eight weeks’ part-time status with pay commensurate with percent work effort.

Unpaid Child Rearing Leave

The School also provides an unpaid Child Rearing Leave for a total amount of unpaid and paid leave up to six months occurring within the first year after the birth or adoption for the child’s care. Longer leaves may be granted only with the approval of the provost. Processes are delineated under Unpaid Leaves.

Extensions of Appointment for Ladder Faculty for Child Rearing

Any new parent in a ladder faculty position who provides significant and sustained care to a newly born or newly adopted child is eligible for a one-year extension of appointment, and therefore the maximum time both in that rank and in the combined non-tenure ranks, regardless of whether the faculty member takes a Child Rearing Leave.

An extension of term will be granted to any ladder faculty member who takes a Child Rearing Leave. Faculty are not obligated to take the extension and may follow their original clock. An extension of appointment request form must be submitted and will automatically be approved.

Faculty who do not take a Child Rearing Leave, but become a parent to a newly born or newly adopted child and wish to receive a one-year extension of appointment, must submit an extension of appointment request form before the end of term in which the child was born or adopted. Another one-year extension of appointment may be granted for one subsequent birth or adoption.

Please contact the Office for Faculty Affairs with any questions regarding an extension of appointment

Connecticut Paid Family and Medical Leave Program (CT PFML)

The Connecticut Paid Family and Medical Leave Program (CT PFML) was implemented under state law. It provides eligible employees with income replacement from the state of Connecticut for qualified leave of absences. Generally, the leaves that qualify for paid time mirror the types of leaves that qualify under the Federal FMLA, Connecticut FMLA, and CT Family Violence Leave Act.

Employees who receive this income replacement may be eligible to receive income replacement for up to 12 weeks in a 12 month period of time. The amount of income replacement depends on the employee’s income, and is calculated by a formula up to a cap of $941 per week (rate subject to change at the state’s discretion).

Learn more about how paid leave applies to you on the CT Paid Leave website.

As delineated by federal and state laws concerning family and medical leaves, a faculty member may take an unpaid leave of absence to care for a seriously ill spouse/ domestic partner, parent (biological, foster, adoptive, stepparent, or legal guardian) or child (biological, adopted, foster, stepchild, or legal ward) who is under 18 years of age, or, if older, is unable to care for themselves because of serious illness for up to sixteen weeks in year one and twelve weeks in year two in any two–year period.

Except in cases of emergency, two weeks’ notice is required, and all requests must be accompanied by written notice from a physician or other licensed health care provider verifying the need for a leave and the probable duration. Serious illness is considered to be a disabling physical or mental condition that requires inpatient care or continuing outpatient care requiring treatment by a licensed health care provider.

As stated in the Faculty Handbook, during the period of this leave, the University will continue to pay its share of health and any non–contributory insurance premiums for the caregiver on leave. An employee who has authorized payroll deductions for benefits must make arrangements with the Benefits Office to continue that coverage. The time available for a Caregiving Leave is reduced by the amount of time during the same two–year period when the faculty member has been on an unpaid Child Rearing Leave or has been relieved from teaching, research, and clinical responsibilities under the policies governing paid Child Rearing Leave and short–term medical disability (Faculty Handbook, Section XI, E).

The faculty member shall make appropriate arrangements with her/his department chair concerning absence for paid or unpaid Child Rearing Leave, or Caregiving Leave. Appropriate arrangements include the obligation to give such notice of intended absence as will enable clinical, research and teaching responsibilities to be covered, if that should be necessary. These procedures are applicable to all full–time faculty members, beginning on the date of their employment at Yale.

Extensions of Appointment

As stated in the Faculty Handbook, any full–time, non–tenured member of the ladder faculty holding an appointment of three years or more who takes a Caregiver's Leave of at least six weeks, may request a six–month extension of their current appointment and the maximum time in that rank and in the combined non–tenure ranks. All extensions of appointment must be requested by the faculty member's department chair by completing the extension of appointment request form during the term in which the Caregiving Leave occurs.

Faculty who are on appointments of three years or more, and who have taught at Yale for at least one year, are eligible for a one-semester or full year leave of absence without salary. Such a leave is granted on recommendation of the department chair or the dean, and with the approval of the provost. Unpaid Leave Request form needs to be completed, submitted, and approved by the OAPD.

Faculty on an unpaid leave of absence are responsible for their share, if any, of the health and group life insurance costs. The employee share of insurance costs will accumulate during the period of unpaid leave and these costs will be collected upon return of the faculty member to a paid status. Yale will continue to pay its share for the period of the leave.