Graduate Employee Leave Options

Paid Leave Oregon

The State of Oregon's Paid Leave Oregon program provides up to twelve weeks of paid leave for the birth or adoption of a child, an employee or family member’s serious illness or injury, or for employees who are or have dependent children who are victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, harassment, bias or stalking.

The University of Oregon’s Paid Leave Oregon equivalent program is administered by The Standard.

To file a Paid Leave Oregon claim that begins on July 1, 2026 or after, file with The Standard after July 1. If your leave begins before July 1, you will file with our previous leave vendor, Unum.

File with The Standard (claims starting 7/1/26 or later) 

File with Unum (claims starting before 7/1/26)

You may be eligible for up to twelve weeks of Paid Leave Oregon if you live and work in Oregon and have earned at least $1000 in Oregon in the past year. 

UO employees, including GEs, should apply for Paid Leave Oregon through The Standard, not through the state. 

The Standard may refer to the program as Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML). PFML and Paid Leave Oregon are the same thing.

GE Family and Medical Leave

When a graduate employee (GE) will be absent for a period of greater than five consecutive working days (one week), they may be entitled to the family and medical leave as described in article 29, section 8 of their collective bargaining agreement (CBA). GEs are not required to use Paid Leave Oregon; however, if they do, it will run concurrently with the GEFML. At the request of a GE, unpaid parental leave can be utilized before paid sick days.

Eligibility

To be eligible for unpaid family and medical leave, you must have been employed by the University of Oregon in a GE position for at least one term in the twelve months preceding the term in which the leave is requested is eligible for leave.

Graduate employees are not eligible for the Federal Medical Leave Act or the Oregon Family Leave Act.

Qualifying Events

If eligible, you are entitled to a total of sixteen (16) work weeks of unpaid leave during any twelve-month period for one or more of the following reasons:

  1. Birth of a child and in order to care for such child.
  2. Placement of child with GE for adoption or foster care.
  3. To care for a spouse (or equivalent in accordance with Oregon state law), partner, child, or parent of the GE when a serious health condition exists.
  4. Your own serious health condition that makes you unable to perform your GE duties.

Provisions of Leave

  • Accrued sick leave must be used prior to entering unpaid status, except in the case of parental leave. Days of paid sick leave count toward the 16 weeks of unpaid Family and Medical Leave, except in the case of parental leave (Article 29, Section 8).
  • In cases where such leave is five (5) weeks or longer in a single term, such leave may be taken in conjunction with an academic leave of absence.

Additional information regarding benefits retention, job protection, and academic leave of absence can be found in the Family and Medical Leave article in the CBA.

Requesting Leave

  1. Provide notification to your department thirty days prior to the date of requested leave, when possible.
    • In the case of an emergency or unforeseen circumstance, the GE must give a verbal notice within twenty-four hours of the qualifying leave event.
  2. For paid leave through Paid Leave Oregon, please follow the instructions linked above.
  3. For additional unpaid leave, complete the Request for Leave Form.
  4. Receive eligibility notification from Human Resources.
    • In the case of a serious health condition, the university may request medical verification from a healthcare provider, and the GE must provide such verification within fifteen days of the request.

Questions & Assistance