Maternity and Paternity Policies

LAU Leads the Way with New Family Leave Policy

The university seals a project aimed at parental policy change on the national level by revising its own.

The project, which also strives to promote access to healthcare for disadvantaged women, serves as an entry point to gender equality.

On 16 December, LAU hosted the closing ceremony of an innovative project funded by the US-Middle East Partnership Initiative (US-MEPI) that addresses parental leave policies within the private and public sectors in Lebanon.

Led by the Arab Institute for Women (AiW), the project titled Equality for Everyone: Gender Reform from Grassroots to Government involved drafting a parental leave law in close collaboration with the National Commission for Lebanese Women (NCLW) that was endorsed by several MPs and was already proposed in the Lebanese parliament.

A highlight of the virtual event was an announcement by LAU President Michel E. Mawad that the university is developing a new family leave policy extending the duration of the maternity leave from 10 to 15 weeks and granting, for the first time in the history of Lebanon, a 10-day paternity leave. The draft of the policy is being finalized and will be submitted to the Board of Trustees in March 2022.

“We are proud to be the first institution in the country to work on such a policy and to entice our government to follow suit and approve the law advocated by the National Commission for Lebanese Women,” Dr. Mawad said. “In so doing, LAU is simply being true to its mission and culture and faithful to the legacy of Sarah Huntington Smith and the fulfillment of her vision. We so much look forward to seeing the whole country and region follow suit.”

US Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy C. Shea, who was at the event, commended “LAU for adopting reforms like the enhanced parental leave program and the creation of family-friendly facilities as it strives to be the first Lebanese institution to implement this important policy.”

Through this project, AiW worked closely with private companies, members of the Lebanese League for Women in Business and NGOs who were willing to consider reviewing their parental leave policies and childcare benefits despite the current economic crisis. It also conducted a national advocacy campaign online via social media platforms, and offline via a TV commercial aired on three national TV stations, reaching close to 2.6 million people in Lebanon.

NCLW President Claudine Aoun Roukoz stressed the importance of increasing women’s participation in the job market with the worsening economic crisis, to stop more families from falling into the cycle of poverty.

To that end, she expressed her hope that parliament would pass the legal amendment that, in addition to recognizing parental leave, “would extend maternity leave to 15 weeks, allow an hour during work hours to pump milk to the infant, provide incubators for the young children of male and female workers, and prohibit discrimination in wages and other benefits.”

The project, which also strives to promote access to healthcare for disadvantaged women and serves as an “entry point to gender equality,” said AiW Director Myriam Sfeir, “proved to be a successful partnership between all actors involved.”

Dr. Jennifer Skulte-Ouaiss, the director of Title IX at LAU and project manager presented LAU as a pilot for parental leave reform. Findings from research conducted by LAU faculty members within the context of the project were also revealed during the closing ceremony.

Dr. Ali Fakih, associate professor and associate chair of the Department of Economics at the Adnan Kassar School of Business produced a white paper and a research paper on family-friendly work practices in Lebanon; Assistant Professors of Clinical Psychology, Dr. Pia Tohme and Dr. Rudy Abi Habib investigated the “Predictors of Work Productivity and Maternal Competence after Having a Baby;” and former researcher at the AiW, Jana Mourad, co-wrote a paper with Dr. Skulte-Ouaiss on “Women and Work During the COVID-19 and Other Crises.”

“Implementing this project despite all the challenges brought about by the compounded crisis Lebanon is passing through and in light of the global pandemic that warrants to be considered a generation-defining event whose impact has been far detrimental when it comes to gender, was challenging,” concluded Sfeir. “But we did it and managed to push for amendments on the level of our own institution so as not to talk the talk without walking the walk.”

Personnel Policy - Benefits Section

Article II - Leaves & Holidays

1. Annual Leave:

Full-time staff members who have completed one year of service shall be eligible to a paid annual leave based on their rank and seniority, as per applicable procedures.

Staff members are entitled to annual leave in accordance with the provisions of the Lebanese Labor Law pursuant to the following guidelines.

1. Staff in job categories “D” and “A”: Twenty working days plus a maximum of fifteen days of unused annual leave accumulated from the previous year.
2. Staff in job categories “P” and “M”: Fifteen working days and one additional day per year for each year over three years of service; for up to five additional days per year for a maximum of twenty working days per year. In addition, a maximum of ten days of unused annual leave accumulated from the previous year may be used.
3. Staff in job categories “O” and “S”: Fifteen working days. In addition, a maximum of five days of unused annual leave accumulated from the previous year may be used.
4. All accumulated and unused annual leaves beyond the specified maxima are forfeited.
5. Part time staff members working more than one year of uninterrupted service are allowed to take annual leave on a pro-rata basis as per the provisions of the Lebanese Labor Law.

The annual leave dates shall be approved by the University according to work requirements, but taking into consideration the wishes of the staff concerned, The University’s decision regarding annual leave dates, however, shall be final.

The University expects every staff to take his/her annual leave when scheduled.

In exceptional cases where a staff works part of his/her annual leave at the University’s request, the employee’s remuneration for such work shall be at the regular rate. No staff shall be asked to work more than half of the annual leave period to which he/she is entitled.

In case of termination of employment for any reason whatsoever, a staff with more than one year’s service shall be paid for approved accrued annual leave days accumulating up to the date of his/her termination in that year.

The University shall not terminate any staff during an approved leave, nor give the notice of termination during such a leave.

2. Holidays:

The University shall observe the holidays considered official by the Lebanese Government for the private sector.

Staff working on a holiday shall be given compensatory time off. If this cannot be arranged they shall be paid for the day worked at their regular hourly rate.

3. Bereavement Leave

LAU will be guided by the principles specified in the Lebanese Labor Law with regards to bereavement leaves.

A compassionate leave of absence with full pay of three calendar days shall be granted to staff who are bereaved by the loss of their father, mother, brother, sister, spouse, child and two days for in-laws, uncles, aunts, grandchildren, child’s spouse and grandfathers or grandmothers.

Special consideration shall be given to additional compassionate leave on the death of the spouse or child of the staff.

4. Family Leaves:

Family Leaves are composed of three types of leaves that are granted to all full- time Faculty and full-time Staff members. These leaves are Maternity Leave, Paternity Leave and Family Care Leave.

1. Maternity Leave

The period of fully-paid maternity leave applicable respectively to full- time staff, full-time faculty and full-time faculty of Gilbert and Rose- Marie Chagoury School of Medicine, as well as the corresponding rules are detailed below and in the “Family Leaves Procedure”.

The maternity leave period may be followed by post-maternity flexible work arrangements including reduced teaching load or working hours. These arrangements shall be set by LAU, taking into consideration at all times the academic and business/operational continuity as well as the job nature and its specificities.

The post-maternity flexible work arrangements shall be detailed in the “Family Leaves Procedure” upon which the post maternity arrangements shall become applicable and in effect.

1. Maternity Leave For Full-Time Female Staff Members

All full-time female staff members shall be entitled to Fifteen (15) consecutive calendar weeks, the equivalent of one hundred and five

(105) calendar days, of maternity leave with full pay.

Maternity leave shall not affect any entitlement to annual leave and both may be taken sequentially if work requirements permit as determined by the University.

2. Maternity Leave For Full-Time Female Faculty members at All Schools in tenure and non-tenure tracks and Visiting Faculty.

Full-Time Female Faculty members at all Schools, in tenure and non- tenure tracks and the Visiting Faculty appointed under a 2 year contract and with at least 1 year of consecutive service as visiting faculty, are to be granted an extended time following or preceding delivery of their new-born, which consists of 105 days, the equivalent of 15 weeks of fully paid maternity leave, in addition to the remainder time of the applicable term.

• To preserve academic continuity, the maternity leave shall start at the beginning of a semester, accordingly the start of the maternity may follow or precede delivery as per the modalities detailed in the “Family Leaves Procedure”.
• For faculty on tenure track, eligibility for promotion will not be affected, the grace period for each pregnancy shall be a one-year deferral per pregnancy, not to exceed a 2-year maximum.

3. Maternity Leave For Full-Time Female Faculty members at the Gilbert and Rose- Marie Chagoury School of Medicine

All full-time female faculty, in tenure and non-tenure tracks, hired by the Gilbert and Rose- Marie Chagoury School of Medicine, shall be entitled to Fifteen (15) consecutive calendar weeks, the equivalent of one hundred and five (105) calendar days, maternity leave with full pay.

Eligibility for promotion will not be affected for faculty on tenure track, the grace period for each pregnancy shall be a one-year deferral per pregnancy, not to exceed a 2-year maximum.

2. Paternity Leave

All Full-Time male faculty and staff members shall be entitled to ten

(10) consecutive calendar days of paternity leave with full pay. The paternity leave modalities shall be detailed in the “Family Leaves Procedure”.

The paternity leave period may be followed by post-paternity flexible work arrangements including reduced teaching load or working hours. These arrangements shall be set by LAU, taking into consideration at all times the academic and business/operational continuity as well as the job nature and its specificities.

The post-paternity flexible work arrangements shall be detailed in the “Family Leaves Procedure” upon which the post paternity flexible arrangements shall become applicable and in effect.

Paternity leave shall not affect any entitlement to annual leave and both may be taken sequentially if work requirements permit as determined by the University.

3. Family Care Leave

All Full-Time Faculty and staff may be granted a Family Care Leave to cater for a direct family member suffering from a critical medical condition. This leave allows flexible working arrangements and/or reduced teaching load or working hours as determined by LAU. These arrangements should at all times take into consideration the academic and business/operational continuity as well as job nature and specificities. Modalities of the family care leave, coverage scope, eligibility criteria and required documentation shall be detailed in the “Family Leaves Procedure” upon which the Family Care Leave arrangements shall become applicable and in effect.

5. Sick Leave:

• A staff unable to report to work due to sudden sickness will be eligible for up to three consecutive days without a medical report.
• The staff should ensure that the supervisor is informed of the sick leave as soon as possible and the supervisor must in turn notify the Human Resources Department of such absence.
• The staff whose sickness is confirmed by a medical report shall be entitled to sick leave and pay in accordance with the following schedule:

• Holidays and weekends falling within sick leave period are considered as part of the sick leave entitlement.
• The University reserves the right to ask for a medical report by a University designated physician.
• The staff may be deprived of the sick leave and pay entitlement if he/she fails to comply with the requirements specified herein above.
• In the event that the sick leave taken by a staff, in accordance with this section, exceeds one month in any calendar year, the University may reduce their annual leave consistent with the provisions of the Lebanese Labor Law, provided that such leave shall not in any case be reduced to less than eight calendar days.
• The University shall not terminate any staff during their sick leave, nor give them notice of termination during said leave, if the staff is still in the probation period as specified by the Lebanese Labor Law.
• In the event of discharge on medical grounds due to sickness, as defined in this article, the date of discharge shall normally be the date on which the entitlements to paid sick leave and vacations are exhausted.
• Staff cannot claim sick leave during an approved annual leave.
• Staff during the probation period may benefit from 2 days of sick leave provided these two days are counted within their yearly sick leave entitlement.

All categories of staff at LAU are subject to the mandates of the applicable labor laws and regulations.