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CUPE 3904, 1: Contract Lecturers | Part-time (under 9 hours)

Pregnancy & Subsequent Parental Leave

According to the Employment Standards Act (ESA), a birth mother who has at least 13 weeks of employment is eligible for 17 weeks of pregnancy leave and an additional 35 (standard) or 61 (extended) weeks of parental leave. Please note that the election of a standard or extended leave option must be made prior to the commencement of an employee’s leave.

TMU pregnancy and subsequent parental leave sub plan top-up

TMU will pay a supplementary unemployment benefit (sub plan) to "top-up" your employment insurance.

In order to be eligible for TMU’s sub plan top-ups, an employee must be in receipt of Employment Insurance benefits.

There are two components to a pregnancy and subsequent parental leave: the length of time you can be on a leave of absence and the length of time you will receive income during your leave of absence. Based on Employment Insurance regulations and the Employment Standards Act, in some cases entitlement to income may not span the entire duration of the leave.

The top-up payment for standard leaves is paid according to the following schedule:

Leave type Length EI benefits TMU sub-plan top-up
Pregnancy leave (Waiting period) First 1 week* (waiting period) None 97% of your pay
Pregnancy leave Next 16 weeks 55% of pay to an EI maximum (see EI website (external link)  for details) EI benefits + top-up amount = 97% of your pay
With pregnancy leave, TMU parental leave 4 weeks 55% of pay to an EI maximum (see EI website (external link)  for details) EI benefits + top-up amount = 97% of your pay
If no pregnancy leave, TMU parental leave 5 weeks 55% of pay to an EI maximum (see EI website (external link)  for details) EI benefits + top-up amount = 97% of your pay

Note: Parental leave may be granted to an employee in accordance with the Ontario Employment Standards Act.

*If you share Employment Insurance parental benefits with another parent, you may be eligible for 5 extra weeks of standard parental benefits or either extra weeks of extended parental leave benefits. One parent cannot receive more than 35 weeks of standard benefits. One parent cannot receive more than 61 weeks of extended benefits.

Sub plan top-up payments from TMU will cease on the end date of an employee's contract.

Employment insurance details

The table below outlines the process for initiating pregnancy leave.

Contact Details When do I contact them?
Your chair/director and HR client services

Note: Any additional inquiries that you may have regarding your pregnancy should be directed to HR Client Services.
  • As soon as possible, but no later than four weeks before you intend to begin their leave.
  • If the baby is born prior to the Start of Leave Date then please inform HR Client Services Advisor as the start date will be the date the baby is born.
  • Please advise your chair/director; HR client service advisor; and pensions and benefits if there is any change to your original leave dates.
Service Canada 
  • Register online with the My Service Canada Account online service (external link) .
  • Your Record of Employment (ROE) will be issued by HR and sent electronically to Services Canada.
  • Once your ROE is received by Service Canada, you will receive a benefit statement with the amount of EI benefits you will receive. Forward your benefit statement to your HR Client Services Advisor and your top-up payment will be processed. 
  • For information regarding EI claims, login to your My Service Canada Account (external link) . 
  • You may begin a claim for pregnancy benefits up to eight weeks before a child is born but no later than the birth of the child.

Note: A delay in application will delay receiving your benefits. 
HR Pension and Benefits Unit
  • Once HR receives your intention to take pregnancy and subsequent parental leave, the pension and benefits team will send you an election form that will detail the cost to continue your coverage for any benefit that you pay a portion of the premiums i.e. Supplemental Life Insurance and Voluntary Accident Insurance.
  • If you participate in the Group RRSP plan, you can continue participating during your pregnancy/parental leave. You will be provided information about this option once you advise HR of your pregnancy and leave. 
Note: Your group benefits will continue during your leave.
  • No action is required by you until you receive forms from HR Pension and Benefits.

Employment Insurance is federally regulated and provides income during your leave. To qualify for EI benefits, the Employment Insurance Act requires at least 600 hours of insurable employment in the 52 week period preceding the claim or since your last claim for employment insurance benefits.

Parents can also choose to split or share parental leave benefits, if both parents are eligible. If the benefits are split, only one parent will need to serve a two-week waiting period.

You can begin your pregnancy leave, as per ESA, no earlier than 17 weeks before the expected date of birth. You may begin a claim for pregnancy benefits, as per EI, up to 12 weeks before a child is born but no later than the birth of the child.

To prevent any delays in processing your claim and top-up payments from TMU, you must apply for employment insurance no later than the birth of your child .

For employees who also take pregnancy leave, parental leave begins when the pregnancy leave ends. Your parental leave must begin and end within 52 weeks or 78 weeks (extended Parental Leave) from the time the child is born.

Additional information

If you would like to suspend your parking deductions for the duration of your pregnancy/parental leave or if you have any questions regarding your parking space while on your leave, please contact Parking Services at 416-979-5008. You will also need to contact the same number to arrange to have your parking deductions/space reinstated when you return from your leave.

Generally, payments deducted from your pay that fall under TMU donations are suspended for the duration of your leave and resume upon return from pregnancy/parental leave. If you would like to stop your donations at any time, please submit a written request to University Advancement who will forward the deduction cancellation to Human Resources. 

One month's notice is required in order for payroll deductions to be stopped. If you would like to suspend or cancel your RAC dues/membership, please contact their customer service representatives at rac@torontomu.ca or 416-979-5096.

For more information

Please see Articles 6.4, 6.5 and 6.6 in your Collective Agreement.

For more information on pregnancy and subsequent parental leave, contact your HR Client Services advisor.

For more information on employment insurance, visit the Service Canada Employment Insurance website.


If there is a question about any portion of this leaves information, the applicable Collective Agreement is the governing document.