Leaves of Absence - Human Resources - Carnegie Mellon University

Leaves of Absence

Carnegie Mellon has many different types of leaves of absence to help people accommodate their needs:

Note: Maternity leave after the birth of a child is covered concurrently under Short Term Disability and FMLA for staff, or as a Faculty Parental Leave for faculty.

Faculty Leaves

Family and Medical Leave Act

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for certain family and medical reasons (up to 26 weeks to care for a military servicemember injured in the line of duty).

  • Employees who have worked at least 1,250 hours in the previous 12 months and have at least 50 Carnegie Mellon employees within 75 miles of their work location are eligible for FMLA coverage.
  • Qualifying reasons for taking an FMLA leave include:
    • caring for a newly born or adopted child,
    • caring for yourself during a serious injury or illness, 
    • caring for a family member experiencing a serious injury or illness,
    • caring for an injured servicemember, or
    • circumstances arising from a family member being called to active duty.

To apply for FMLA leave:

  1. Notify your manager and complete the appropriate forms as listed below at least 30 days in advance of the leave (or with as much advance notice as possible).
  2. Complete the Application for Family and Medical Leave of Absence [pdf] and the appropriate certification form:
    1. Certification for Employee’s Own Serious Health Condition [pdf]
    2. Certification for Family Member’s Serious Health Condition [pdf]
    3. Certification for Serious Injury or Illness of Covered Servicemember [pdf]
    4. Certification of Qualifying Exigency or Military Family [pdf]
  3. Send the form to the HR-Benefits Office, 319 South Craig St., Pittsburgh, PA 15213.
  4. Inform your manager of your intended date of return to work, if known.