UCD’s Dignity and Respect Policy sets out the framework for dealing with complaints of bullying and harassment, including sexual harassment. It includes information for dealing with complaints informally as well as information on the formal procedure. It also contains information on the supports available for staff and students.
You can learn more at https://www.ucd.ie/equality/support/dignityrespect/
Gender identity and expression is a positive, core part, of being human and experiencing wellbeing and fulfilment. UCD celebrates its diverse community of employees and students and their diverse gender identities and expression. Fundamental equality and inclusion in UCD’s community is central to our University’s ethos of academic excellence and integrity and our aspiration to be leaders in our society.
For more, please see http://www.ucd.ie/equality/information/policies/genderidentityexpression/
UCD's Code of Practice for the Employment of People with Disabilities sets out to provide a statement of policy and guidance in relation to the employment of people with disabilities. It states that UCD is committed to ensuring that people with disabilities are not disadvantaged by reason of having a disability.
UCD's Gender Balance on Committees policy articulates UCD’s commitment to a minimum gender balance of 40% women and 40% men on all decision making committees (and among their Chairs).
UCD has a range of family friendly policies to support those with caring responsibilities.
The UCD adoptive leave policy serves to ensure that UCD employees are supported before, during and after their adoptive leave, subject to the consolidated Adoptive Leave Acts, further details of which can be found (opens in a new window)here. The School of Economics commits to providing a reduction in teaching and administration in the term following the staff’s return from adoptive leave to ease the transition.
This policy aims to provide for the temporary absence from employment of employees for the purpose of the provision of full-time care and attention to a person requiring it, while protecting the employee's employment rights. Apart from the entitlements per the official UCD Carers Leave Policy, which can be found (opens in a new window)here, the school of Economics commits to making all reasonable efforts to provide teaching and administrative relief should a staff member require unexpected assistance in carer duties. To facilitate this, all staff are required to maintain current course materials in the School’s Google drive.
The University offers a policy to enable faculty and staff to take extended periods of unpaid time away from work, and to help employees strike a balance between paid work and personal life. Further details can be found (opens in a new window)here. The School of Economics commits to making all reasonable efforts to provide teaching and administrative relief in the first term post-return to allow a gradual progression to full duties in accordance with UCD regulations.
This scheme allows faculty and staff to balance their working arrangements with their outside commitments. Under the terms of the scheme, special unpaid leave is available for a period of not less than 2 and not more than 13 consecutive weeks. Staff members have the option of having their reduced pay spread over a 12-month period. Further details can be found here.
Compassionate Leave may be granted to provide staff with time away from work at a time of personal or family need, especially when there is a death in the family. Further details can be found (opens in a new window)here.
To ensure that UCD employees are supported before, during and after their maternity leave, all pregnant employees, who reach their twenty-fourth week of pregnancy, are entitled to twenty-six weeks leave. Employees, who are entitled to maternity leave, are also entitled to sixteen weeks additional unpaid leave immediately following their maternity leave. This sixteen-week period is known as additional unpaid maternity leave, with an extended maternity leave allowing for employee taking their maternity leave so late that fewer than four weeks are remaining in the twenty-six-weeks maternity leave, the employee is still obliged to take four weeks leave after the birth of the baby. Further details can be found (opens in a new window)here.
In addition to the UCD policies, the School of Economics provides the following additional arrangements in relation to maternity leave:
Paternity leave seeks to support those with parental caring responsibilities to balance their work and family life. It also encourages a more equitable sharing of parental responsibilities to allow for more equality of opportunity in the workplace. Further details of the UCD Paternity Leave Policy can be found (opens in a new window)here.
The School of Economics provides for a teaching and administration reduction in the term following the return of staff from paternity leave.
A member of staff shall be entitled to leave with pay for urgent family reasons, for example, an injury or illness of a child, spouse/partner, brother or sister, parent or grandparent.
Further details of which can be found here.
The purpose of this policy is to demonstrate the University’s commitment to supporting those returning from maternity/adoptive leave and those returning from carers leave, through a variety of measures, to enable them to continue to develop their careers. Supporting parents and carers is also a commitment that the University has made in its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion strategy. The principle can be briefly put as follows:
Further details can be found (opens in a new window)here.
The main purpose of this scheme is to provide a more flexible system of attendance for staff (excludes Faculty), within certain defined limits. Please note that flexi-time is different from “flexible working arrangements” which also exist in the University. Flexible working arrangements include part-time working, job sharing, working greater hours during peak periods and reduced hours during slower times, working remotely/from home; which are not recorded on a flexi-time system and thus do not involve staff building up hours where they can take a “flexi-day” leave.
Further details can be found (opens in a new window)here.
The purpose of job sharing is to allow staff (excluding faculty) to opt for a more flexible working arrangement for a temporary/indefinite period of time in order to facilitate the balancing of work with other commitments. We recognise that people should be able to continue their career and welcome the opportunity to use their skills on a part-time basis. Job sharing is a way two people voluntarily share the duties of one post between them. Further information is provided (opens in a new window)here: Job Sharing for Non-Academic Staff Policy and Job Sharing for Technical Staff Policy.
UCD HR details the relevant information on their website at https://www.ucd.ie/hr/promotions/
The University employs an Employee Relations and Policy Manager who works with colleagues from across the university to enhance a progressive and collaborative Employee Relations culture. They provide supportive, solution-focused practices for managers and employees, aiming to make UCD an employer of choice.
(opens in a new window)Protected Disclosures Policy
The purpose of the Protected Disclosures Policy is to encourage an employee within the University to make a disclosure of any potential wrongdoing of which they become aware and for the University to provide protection for the person making the disclosure. This policy provides guidelines as to how and to whom a Protected Disclosure should be made.
UCD is committed to the promotion of an environment which fosters mutual respect and understanding between individuals and its constituent communities. Mediation is a framework for resolving conflict in an informal manner which is impartial and objective and aims to resolve conflict at the earliest opportunity.
More information at http://www.ucd.ie/equality/support/mediation/
Wellbeing, Training, and Development
Staff and Student Support
The University recognises that lifelong learning is essential for developing individual careers and for dealing the with demands of an increasingly complex and changing work and societal environment. Our aim is to support individuals and groups to address some of these challenges through the provision of a comprehensive development portfolio. More information here on the (opens in a new window)HR Training and Development (opens in a new window)Policy.