College Policies

You can read about the full details of all College policies relating to work-life balance for staff on the Staff Office website here.

In addition, we have summarised the key features of some of the main leave entitlements and flexible working arrangements for you below. If you are considering applying for extended leave of any kind, take a look at our advice on planning for career breaks.

Wondering about your entitlements for…

... maternity leave?

• All full and part-time pensionable staff get 26 weeks paid maternity leave, plus 16 weeks additional unpaid leave. Where possible, your job will remain unchanged while you’re away and you will return to the same position you left, if at all practicable.

… paternity leave?

• College provides up to 3 days paid paternity leave for all male staff, to be taken at the time of the birth of the child, or up to 4 weeks after the birth or adoption.

… adoptive leave?

• Entitlements for adoptive leave amount to 16 weeks with pay, plus a further 8 weeks of unpaid leave.

… parental leave?

• This is unpaid leave in order to care for a child under 5 years old. As long as you have been continuously employed within College for at least 3 months you are entitled to apply for parental leave.

… an academic leave of absence?

• Academics can apply for leave for specific academic purposes. This leave is generally on full salary, and typically lasts for one term, but may be for up to a full year.

… a longer career break?

• If you need a longer break for personal/family reasons, further education, a period abroad, or a number of other reasons, you can apply for an unpaid career break of 1-3 years. When it’s time to return to work, you will be reassigned to an available opening within the same department and grade you previously held.

… flexible working?

• Currently in Ireland there is no legal entitlement to flexible working, but College policy allows all staff meeting certain criteria to apply for teleworking (working from home), provided the particular type of work is suitable to be carried out in this way.

… a reduced working year ?

• A new Shorter Working Year scheme allows you to take extra unpaid leave of between 2 and 13 weeks. It can be taken all at once, or split into up to 3 chunks. This scheme might be useful for people who need leave to coincide with children’s school holidays, or for other external commitments.

You can find full details on any of the above schemes on the Staff Office website by clicking here.