Carnegie Mellon University

Caring for a Family Member

When you are faced with caring for an aging or elderly parent, or a spouse or child with a serious injury or illness, you may wonder how you will manage it all. The university provides resources to help you balance your work life with your caretaking responsibilities.

On this page:


Time Away from Work

With all types of leave, you should contact Leaves Management to discuss your eligibility. You should also notify your manager and seek approval for time away from work with as much advance notice as possible.

  • Eligible staff members may use Paid Time Off to care for a family member.
  • The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible faculty and staff members with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for certain family and medical reasons (up to 26 weeks to care for a military service member injured in the line of duty).
  • Eligible staff members may take Staff Personal Leave [pdf] of up to one year to care for a dependent.
  • Eligible faculty members may take Faculty Family Leave of up to one year to care for a dependent.
  • Under the Flexible Working Hours Policy, full-time staff members may work with their supervisor to arrange an alternative schedule to accommodate caregiving duties.
  • HR's Temporary Employment Service can provide temporary staffing to assist with a staff member's duties while on leave.

Benefits Considerations

  • If your loved one is a dependent, you may need to review and update your health and welfare benefits coverage or increase your spending account allocations during the next open enrollment period.
  • Certain leaves may impact your benefits. Be sure to discuss how your leave will impact your benefits with Leaves Management.

Support Resources

  • Employee Assistance Program — Provides CMU employees and their household members with resources to assist with caregiving. Get help with child and elder care resources and referrals, counseling for stress and other issues, financial planning and legal counseling.
  • Care for Business — Eligible employees and graduate students who need child, elder or household care can search provider profiles or post jobs. The program also provides access to emergency backup care at a subsidized rate, and help with finding in-home caregivers.