FAQ

General Information

• When are the contracts effective?  (Updated May 2026)

• The previous BX and BR contracts have been consolidated into one agreement. The new contract is in effect immediately following ratification, March 20th, 2026 - December 31, 2029. Some portions of the contracts, including the 50% TA and AI appointments for MFA and PhD graduate students, will be phased in over time. The first salary increases will occur October, 1, 2026.

  Certain articles will apply to both types of employees while other articles apply to ASE or GSR only and will have a section A and B, specific to each type of employee. 

• What is supposed to be in the employee file? (Posted April 21, 2023) 
• The contract defines an employment file to include reports, documents, correspondence, and other materials in their entirety or redacted portions about an ASE/GSR's employment in the bargaining unit. Materials related exclusively to the graduate student's coursework shall not be considered part of the employment file.
• Can the employee file be electronic? (Posted April 21, 2023) 
• Yes, as long as it can be accessed and distributed by request of the ASE, Grad Studies, or ELR.
• Where can an ASE or GSR submit a compliant under the abusive conduct policy?
  (Updated May 2026) 
• If an ASE or GSR would like to submit a complaint under the Abusive Conduct in the Workplace policy, please direct them to send their complaint at the Davis Campus to [email protected] or at UC Davis Health to [email protected].

Appointment & Hiring

• Are we required to hire a TA at 25% or 50%? Can we hire someone anywhere in between? (Updated May 2026)

• Effective Winter 2027, all MFA and PhD students appointed as a TA or AI must be at 50%, absent an exception. Master's degree students can still be appointed between 25-50%.  

  A 25% appointment represents a quarterly ASE workload of 110 hrs and a 50% appointment requires a 220hr workload in a quarter. That is generally where we have put our TAs. If you have positions that are assigned workload in between, we are to able appoint a student at the appropriate percentage.

• Is there a minimum percentage required by either of the student contracts? (Updated May 2026)

• Effective Winter 2027 TA and AI appointments for MFA and PhD students must be at 50% time, absent an exception.  This does not apply to MA students or any other titles (GSR, reader, tutor) for MFA or PhD students. 

  Additionally, as directed in UC Davis APM, Appendix II-B Appointment of Graduate Students, any single appointment or combination of appointments normally is not to exceed half-time (50%) during the academic year. Any single appointment may not be less than 25%. Percentage appointment must be commensurate with the hours worked (effort), and not calculated to achieve a gross dollar figure.

  By exception from Graduate Studies with a petition for exception to policy a hiring department can request for a student to work over 50% time, with a maximum of 75% during the academic year, based on a departmental hiring need. 

• Does the 50% TA and AI appointment requirement for MFA and PhD Students apply during Summer Sessions?
• No, this do not apply during the summer because certain provisions in the revised ASE Appointments article, such as the requirement for 50% Teaching Assistant or Associate Instructor appointments, do not apply during summer session, as it is not an article applicable to the ASE Summer Session article. 
• Can a student hold both a TA and Reader position in the same term? (Updated May 2026)

• A student may hold multiple positions in different titles. However, a student should not hold two ASE (TA/AI/Reader/Tutor) positions for the same course and the maximum combined percentage is 50% during the academic year. 

  Effective Winter 2027 TA and AI appointments for MFA and PhD students must be at 50% time, absent an exception.  One exception to hold a less than 50% TA or AI appointment is if the student holds another salaried bargaining unit appointment and the two jobs combined total 50%.  Because a reader is not a salaried position, a MFA or PhD student cannot hold a TA and reader position together totaling 50% time. 

• Can we combine a students appointment in a given quarter so they are an ASE & GSR? (Update May 2026)

• As always, any student can concurrently hold different types of appointments (ASE, GSR). This has not changed. Percentage appointment must be commensurate with the hours worked (effort), and not calculated to achieve a gross dollar figure.

  Effective Winter 2027 TA and AI appointments for MFA and PhD students must be at 50% time, absent an exception.  One exception to hold a less than 50% TA or AI appointment is if the student holds another salaried bargaining unit appointment and the two jobs combined total 50%.  Because a GSR is a salaried position, a MFA or PhD student can hold a TA and GSR position together totaling 50% time. 

• Can a MFA or PhD student hold a 25% TA position and a fellowship (not equating to a salary point)?

• This is allowable until Winter 2027 when a TA and AI appointments must be at 50% time and cannot be combined with a fellowship to reduce the appointment percentage of the TA.  

  An exception just for the 2026-2027 year based on the post-ratification settlement side letter, is for departments that have already communicated 2026-27 academic year TA employment opportunities to incoming PhD or MFA students at less than 50% FTE, the University is not required to provide additional bargaining unit appointments, provided the graduate student also receives concurrent financial support at least equal to GSR salary point 1 at 25% ($4,800/qtr) for the same quarter as the 25% TA appointment.  This exception is allowable for Winter and Spring 2027. 

• If a student is both an MS and PhD degree student, does the 50% TA and AI appointment requirement effective Winter 2027 apply to them?
• Yes, because they are a PhD student. 
• Can the 50% TA appointment requirement for MFA and PhD students, effective Winter 2027, be a combination of TA appointments totaling 50%?
• Yes, it can be a combination of two 25% TA appointments in the same department or different departments.  The total simply needs to add up to 50%. 
• Are PhD and MFA student no longer able to be hired as Readers?
• They can be hired into any appropriate position for their job responsibilities, but effective Winter 2027, if they are hired into a TA or AI position is must be at 50%. 
• If we have GSRs working less than 50% now, do we need to increase their appointments to 50%? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Appointment percentage must be commensurate with the hours worked (effort), and not calculated to achieve a gross dollar figure. The percentage appointment should be based on work effort. If the work duties and effort for GSR or ASEs are modified, the percentage appointment may be increased or decreased.
• Regarding effort, is it allowable to have a GSR appointment for 12 months at a fixed %, but with the expectation that the effort would be heavier some months and lighter others, averaging out to the % of appointment? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• GSRs are considered exempt employees. The GSRs workload (time and effort commitment) will be commensurate with the appointment percentage each month (i.e., a 50% GSR should be assigned a workload that could reasonably be accomplished in an average of 20 hours per week). It is understood that the workload may fluctuate in a given time period (e.g., workweek, month, academic term) due to the general functions and activities within a research lab or program. The expectations of attendance, presence, and participation should be defined clearly between the supervisor and employee.
• Are we still able to specify 25% appointments, or is 50% considered the “standard”? What about percentages between 25-50%? (Update May 2026)

• Graduate students may be appointed between 25-50% time during the academic year. It is important the workload be commensurate with the percent appointment and this be well documented. Full-time equivalent (FTE) should also be in measurable effort, not fractional, like 47.8%.

  Effective Winter 2027 TA and AI appointments for MFA and PhD students must be at 50% time, absent an exception.

• Will there be new ASE/GSR appointment notification templates for upcoming appointments? (Update May 2026)
• Yes, new appointment letter templates will be provided before July 1, 2026 when they are required per the contract to be implemented. 
• Can we hire students holding a 50% TA appointment at a small (10%) GSR appointment during the quarters they are TAing? (Updated May 2026)
• Yes, refer to APM Section III.D. The workload must be commensurate with the percent appointment, and this must be well-documented. Full-time equivalent (FTE) should also be in measurable effort (10% = 4hrs), not fractional, like 11.8%. Additionally, a petition for exception to policy for over 50% employment needs to be submitted for review/approval before the appointment is offered. 
• Does the new contract address hiring advanced undergraduates as TAs? (Updated May 2026)
• The policy of hiring undergraduates into TA positions is determined by the University and is by approved by exception with COCI. The contract contains language regarding the terms and conditions of employment for undergraduates when appointed as a TA such as wages, fee remission and other eligible benefits.
• How will we decouple effort towards employment from effort towards degree progress when it is all the same research? (Updated May 2026)

• The effort doesn't need to be decoupled but there should be clearly set academic expectations to allow progress assessment at the end of the quarter and, in a separate document, milestones and deliverables associated with the GSR employment and commensurate with the % appointment.  Resources to set academic expectations are a 299 Syllabus provided by Graduate Council and for employment expectations the GSR Supplement Document should be used. 

  The contract acknowledges that academic responsibilities continue to exist for all students and that these academic requirements may be separate from employment workload.

• Do GSRs need to work the dates after the quarter ends (6/15-6/30 or 12/15-12/31) or during academic breaks?
  (Posted April 21, 2023)

• GSRs are fiscal year/exempt employees expected to fulfill the requirements assigned during their appointment period. The GSRs workload (time and effort commitment) will be commensurate with the appointment percentage each month.  I.e. a 50% GSR should be assigned a workload that could reasonably be accomplished in an average of 20 hours per week. Emphasis should be placed on meeting the responsibilities assigned to the position rather than working a specified number of hours. The workload may fluctuate in a given time period (e.g., workweek, month, academic term) due to the general functions and activities within a research lab or program.

  The scheduling and approval of time off is a supervisor's duty. The supervisor should discuss early in the employment relationship the process for requesting and approving time off and the required work schedule – including whether their presence and work should be conducted during the academic breaks or holidays. 

• Are ASE (TA/AI/Reader/Tutor) students expected to work during academic breaks?
• ASE (TA/AI/Reader/Tutor) workload should be completed within days of the final exam. There is normally no expectation of work to be completed during academic breaks for this classification of employee or job.
   
• Would appointment security extend for the length of term the GSR appointment letter was, e.g. 12 months? (Posted April 21, 2023)
• Yes, security of appointment occurs once the student has been offered and accepted a Written Appointment Notification. The security is for the period designed in the Written Appointment Notification.

Salary & Experience Based Placement

• Is the time of evaluation the same every year for determining experience based salary point placement? (Updated May 2026)
• For Graduate Student Researchers the review period will only occur once a year as of June 30th.
  For ASEs the review is on a rolling basis and should be reviewed at each appointment and reappointment. Summer experience in an ASE title does not count.
• Do quarters of experience accrue separately for quarters spent as a TA/AI versus quarters spent as a GSR or is total number of quarters employed in either title? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Quarters of experience are counted separately in the TA/AI classification and GSR classification. They are not a combined total.
• Do the quarters of experience only apply to the students department/school? Or if they have appointments outside of our school do we need to count those as well? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Experience is counted for experience obtained at their campus, not limited to department/unit/college. Experience does not need to include experience obtained outside of UC Davis. However, nothing prohibits hiring a student at a higher experience level.
• Does experience prior to UC Count? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Experience is counted for experience obtained at their campus, not limited to department/unit/college. Experience does not need to include experience obtained outside of UC Davis. However, nothing prohibits hiring a student at a higher experience level.
• How do we determine which experience salary point new GSRs should be placed on? (Updated May 2026)

• Experience is based on the number of quarters worked by a certain point in time. The review period for increases based on experience will only occur once a year at the end of spring quarter (as of June 30th). A GSR with three (3) quarters of experience as a GSR at 25% or higher per term at the same campus will be appointed at salary point 2 or higher. A GSR with six (6) quarters of experience as a GSR at 25% or higher per term at the same campus will be appointed at salary point 3 or higher. Students may be placed at a higher salary point (from contract: “At the University’s sole discretion, it may place GSRs at a higher salary point than the minimum”).  

  Once a student is appointed at a salary point, they should remain at that salary point or greater for all future appointments and no downward movement on the salary point scale should be taken.

• Experience salary points for GSR only apply for the first 3 salary points? After salary point 4, there are no experience increases? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Yes, the experienced-based movement began Fall 2023 and requires students with 3 prior quarters of experience in classification at least 25% to be placed at salary point 2 or higher, and students with 6 prior quarters of experience in classification at least 25% to be placed at salary point 3 or higher. There is no further experience-based movement required by the contract.
• If a student works as a GSR during the summer, does that count as a quarter for experience? (Updated May 2026)
• Yes, experience at 25%+ for a total of 12 weeks during the summer counts as one-quarter of GSR experience for the purpose of salary placement. The Summer Quarter experience immediately preceding a Fall Quarter does not count towards experience for the Fall because per the contract, experience for Fall Quarter is determined as of June 30th. (Summers do not count toward the overall quarter limit on student employment.)
• Does GSR experience prior to enrollment in a grad group as a GSR, either in a professional program or a MS program at UC count towards quarters of experience. (Updated May 2026)
• Yes. All experience in the GSR series (JC 3282, 3140, 3150, 3144, 3154, 3152) at UC Davis, 25% or greater for an entire quarter, counts toward experience; for the purpose of required experience-based recognition toward salary placement.
• If we move a student up in salary point, can we move them back down to a lower salary point? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Once a student is appointed at a salary point, they should remain at that salary point or greater for all future appointments and no downward movement on the salary point scale should be taken.
• Do summer session TA appointments count towards the ASE experience-based quarter count to move to the next salary level? (Posted April 21, 2023)
• No they do not, only Fall, Winter & Spring quarter TA experience counts.
• Does TA experience at a different university count towards their overall experience?
  (Posted April 21, 2023)
• TA and AI teaching experience is counted from the same campus. Therefore, only teaching experience at UCD is counted.
• Do all Associate In employees skip from salary point 3 to salary point 5 when they advance to candidacy? (Updated May 2026)
• Per the new contract, the advancement to candidacy requirement has been removed from the contract. The new contract requirements for experience based salary point placement are 6 quarters of 25% or more teaching experience places a student at salary point 3 and 9 quarters of 25% or more teaching experience places a student at salary point 5. Nothing precludes a department from appointing at a higher salary point.
• How and when are the Associate In salary points 4, 6, and 7 used? (Posted April 21, 2023)
• Departments can use these salary points whenever they would like. You can always pay at a higher than minimum experience salary level.
• Are there current tools to help determine prior experience as a TA or GSR? (Updated May 2026)
• We are currently working with the Cognos Team to develop a Cognos report with this information. In the meantime, continue to use the TA/AI and GSR Experience Report in the restricted Box File, review the Historical Financial Data in Grad Hub, or look in UCPath to see prior quarters worked as a GSR/TA/AI.

Time Reporting & Benefits

• Are graduate student academic employees required to submit timesheets?

• Yes, ALL graduate student academic employees are required to submit monthly timesheets in TRS.  Exempt employees are submitting monthly timesheets in arrears indicating any leave time taken in whole day increments or a blank timesheet to certify they did not take any leave time.  Non-exempt employees submit bi-weekly timesheets (or monthly if they concurrently hold a monthly exempt job) with hours worked and/or leave time taken in order to be paid. 

  Supervisors are required to approve timesheets submitted. 

  If a graduate student's position is not accessible in TRS, please either work with your Service Center to troubleshoot the issue or have the graduate student submit a paper timesheet which should be kept in their employee file. 

• What are GSR PTO accruals and how will they be tracked? (Updated May 2026)

• GSRs with a 25% or more appointment, for a minimum of one full month, will be eligible to use personal time off with pay during the length of the appointment. GSRs may earn up to 12 days per year and the days will be prorated at a rate of one day per month for every full month of appointed service. 

  GSRs will report PTO used in TRS by submitting a timesheet each month to report PTO, or other leave usage, or if no time off was taken a blank timesheet will be submitted to certify no leave was taken.  A guidance document for GSR PTO reporting can be found on the TRS website. At this time departments will need to track accrual and usage locally to determine a GSRs current PTO balance as this is not located in UCPath.

• How is the GSR PTO awarded and used? (Updated May 2026)
• GSRs accrue PTO one day per month of their appointment period. PTO should be used during their appointment period. It will not transfer to new appointments. However, it will remain during the period of extension of an existing appointment with the same department/PI/job duties.  A maximum of up to 18 days can be rolled over.  It is a use-it-or-lose-it benefit and has no monetary value upon separation.
• Once GSRs use their PTO days, but want to take additional time off, should they be submitting LWOP? (Posted April 21, 2023)
• 4/21/2023: All use of leave must be requested by the employee and approved by their supervisor. They can request leave without pay for additional time off.
• Is a GSR or TA who is employed for one quarter eligible for the 8 week of long-term leave? Would it extend beyond the quarter? (Posted April 21, 2023)
• Yes, a GSR/TA appointed for a quarter or longer, at 25% or greater, is eligible for long-term leave. No leave would extend beyond the appointment period.
• Is the 8 weeks of paid leave on a calendar, fiscal or academic year basis? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• The ASE/GSR paid leave is to be administered on an academic year basis and will be administered October - September. 
• Can students use two 8-week leaves during the year for two separate events; i.e. baby bonding & caring for a parent etc.
• No - the 8 week benefit is limited to 8 paid weeks during the Academic Year from October - September.
• Can you confirm the childcare reimbursements are included in the calculation of the benefits we pay for ASE/GSRs? (Posted April 21, 2023)
• Yes, it is a part of the composite benefits rate (CBR). There are no changes in the campus practice for reimbursement or accounting of this benefit.
• For Academic Student Employees (ASEs) and Graduate Student Researchers (GSRs) how will the benefit of dependent health insurance premiums be paid or reimbursed? (Updated May 2026)
• They will submit a reimbursement request by following the instructions on the Parenting and Childcare portion of our website, under the Student Health Insurance Program, Voluntary Coverage for Dependents section.

Fee Remission

• Has there been a change to the Fee Remission Article with the implementation of the new BX/BR contract?
• No, the Fee Remission Article, remains CCL (current contract language).  Full tuition and fee remission is still applied for a 25% graduate student academic position (NRST is only applied to GSR positions). 
• The "Current Practice for NRST" section in both contracts appears to only codify the UCOP policy to reduce NRST by 100% for up to 3 years post candidacy. The contract itself does not require NRST remission for pre-candidacy students. (Posted January 31, 2023) 
• Yes, this is correct. The contract does not require NRST remission for pre-candidacy students. UC Davis currently has additional local policy governing NRST remission for students.

Student Financial Support Planning

• Will the salary increases affect work study eligibility? (Posted February 2, 2023)
• No, work-study eligibility does not take into account earnings from employment positions. It does take into account any student financial support fellowships, fee remissions, and/or financial aid the student receives.
• Should programs anticipate an increase in work study units? (Posted February 2, 2023)
• No, work study funding is capped based on an allocation from the Department of Education, and there is no indication this allocation will be increased. In order to cover 75% of the salary for eligible GSR's, the number of work study units will have to decrease.
• How will the Campus Fee Grant change now that campus fees are covered as part of TA fee remission? (Posted February 2, 2023)
• The Campus Fee Grant (available through Financial Aid) is based on return-to-aid on campus based fees and should not be impacted by the labor contract.
• Where can I find GSR Cost Calculators? (Updated May 2026)
• Current GSR Cost Calculators can be found on this webpage: https://grad.sf.ucdavis.edu/academic-personnel or under the Tools and Resources section of our website.  
• Is there suggested language for admissions offer letters? (Posted January 31, 2023)
• Yes, please see the templates at https://grad.ucdavis.edu/award-letter-best-practices.
• What salary scales should we use to estimate employment earnings in our new multi-year offer letters to prospective students? (Posted February 2, 2023)
• If you choose to include employment in your offer letter, which lists a dollar amount for employment, you should use the current salary scales. Language is already included in the letter to indicate that the amount listed above is a minimum amount and that all compensation amounts are governed by the applicable collective bargaining unit.
• Should graduate programs refrain from offering dollar amounts in multi-year offers to prospective students? (Posted February 2, 2023)
• Graduate programs should offer round, whole dollar amounts in increments of $500 for student financial support fellowships, whenever possible. As a reminder, fellowships are not tied to expectation of employment or service to the University. If graduate programs would like to offer dollar amounts for employment, they should follow the employment funding template with the understanding that the amounts provided in that letter are a minimum and that any additional student financial support fellowships should not be reduced in response to wage increases.
• If we have a multi-year template stating a "combination of TA/GSR/Fellowship," should we provide a range of estimated salary to account for future increases? (Posted February 2, 2023)
• No. Multi-year offer letters must separate out employment and student financial support fellowships as shown in Graduate Studies' funding templates. The amounts used to estimate employment earnings should be based upon the current salary scales. Language is already included in the template letter to indicate that the amount listed above is a minimum amount and that all compensation amounts are governed by the applicable collective bargaining unit.
• Will students who are awarded Graduate Program Fellowship Allocation (GPFA) support be considered Graduate Student Researchers (GSRs) under the new contract?
• This type of internal fellowship is not covered by the bargaining agreement if that's the only type of support received by the student.

Academics

• How will we decouple effort towards employment from effort towards degree progress when it is all the same research? (Updated May 2026)
• The effort doesn't need to be decoupled but there should be clearly set academic expectations to allow progress assessment at the end of the quarter and, in a separate document, milestones and deliverables associated with the GSR employment and commensurate with the % appointment.  Resources to set academic expectations are a 299 Syllabus provided by Graduate Council and for employment expectations the GSR Supplement Document should be used.                               It is always best practice to have clear syllabi with associated learning goals and expectations, descriptions of academic expectations, and clear explanations of how academic assessments and evaluations of work will be conducted. The contract acknowledges that academic responsibilities continue to exist for all students and that these academic requirements may be separate from employment workload.
• How are graduate student 299 units calculated, in terms of academic effort? Does one unit of 299 correspond to a specific number of hours or research work (at home, in the lab, in the field)? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• This is for the Academic Senate to consider. https://academicsenate.ucdavis.edu/committees/courses-of-instruction/policies-procedures#Credit
   

Postdoctoral Scholars

• Are Postdoc reappointments still for 2 years? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: Postdoc initial appointments are for 2 years and reappointments are for 1 year. But for the postdocs completing their 1 year initial appointment, the reappointment would be for 2 years because there is a mutual understanding that there is one 2 year appointment over the postdoc career.
• Is there any exemption to the two-year initial appointment for postdocs? What about if the relationship does not work and has to be terminated earlier? (Posted January 31, 2023) 
• No, there is no exemption to the two-year appointment. All initial appointments of a postdoc at UC must be for a two-year duration. However, there is a new release provision for Postdocs on their initial appointment, with minimum 30 days’ notice to the Postdoc. The release cannot be effective before the one-year mark. Release is at the University’s sole discretion and can be for any reason, except an unlawful reason.
• Is the time of evaluation the same every year for experiential increases?
• Yes, experiential or level increases are April 1st for postdocs hired between April 2nd - September 30th and October 1st for postdocs hired between October 1 - April 1st each year.
• If a postdoc has an initial appointment and has a F1 - OPT for 18 months, must we give them two year appointment, and if so are we obligated to give J1? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: Yes, a two-year initial appointment for a postdoc is required. There is no exemption for the initial 2 year appointment and separation may need to occur at the time work authorization has exhausted.
• If a postdoc has prior experience not at a UC, is the experience level movement due after 12 months of prior experience or after 12 months UC experience? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: The initial experience level placement is determined by the prior experience, then the UC hire date is what determines the experience level movement date; April or October. Experience level increases will be processed twice a year, in April and October, depending on the date of the postdocs’ initial appointment (Anniversary Date) at UC. Postdocs with initial UC appointment date between April 2 and September 30 move to the next experience level on April 1. Postdocs with initial appointment date between October 1 and April 1 move to the next experience level on October 1.
• How will the 30-day extension work if we notice a Postdoc of release less than 30 days prior to their one-year anniversary? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: The postdoc would continue to be employed for the 30 days from the time you provided the release notice. This will take them into the 2nd year of their initial appointment.
• A postdoc fellow, job code 3253, has a $55k fellowship and the department is supplementing with a postdoc employee to bring them to the minimum of the salary scale for their experience level. With the 4/1/23 salary scale increases, if the postdoc gets an increase in their fellowship can the department decrease the supplement and when can they do this? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: Yes, the department can adjust the supplement to make the total salary equal the minimum salary of the appropriate experience level. Even though the supplement is changing, the total pay for the postdoc is not because pay promised has not changed, only the source. Adjustment of the supplement can be done as necessary, based on changes to the fellowship to keep the pay at the required level for the postdoc.
• Will there be a template letter for the new postdoc appointment release? (Update 5/13/2026)
• 5/8/2026: Please email [email protected] to request the template letter for the one year release of an initial two year postdoc appointment. 
• Will the postdoc experience level increases, anniversary dates, and range adjustments, be automatically updated in UCPath or will a case need to be submitted to the Service Channel? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: The postdoc employee, job code 3252, experience level increase and range adjustments will be automatic but the anniversary date will need to be updated via a case to their Service Channel at this time.  Postdoc fellows, job code 3253 and postdoc paid directs, job code 3254, will need to have their experience level and range adjustments manually increased because only the hiring department knows if the fellowship or extramural agency can absorb the salary increase.  
• Will postdoc layoffs require severance? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: No there is no severance pay for layoffs. A 30-day notice is required and the university may only layoff for lack of funding.
• If we are appointing a postdoc to the initial two-year appointment and know that there will be lack of funding prior the the 2 years, do we need to give a layoff notice at the time of appointment (for consistency), or can we give the layoff notice at a later time? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: There is no obligation to issue the layoff notice more than 30 days in advance. It may be appropriate to discuss the situation with the employee in advance of the 30 day time period.
• A postdoc is reappointed post contract ratification for one year, but there is only a few months of funding available. Do we issue for one year or only through the funding availability? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: All reappointments should be for one year, per the contract, and then process a layoff due to funding 30 days prior to the end of the funding availability.
• What is the postdoc layoff process? Who do we notify, is approval needed? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: https://grad.ucdavis.edu/postdoctoral-scholar-appointment-and-promotion Prepare the layoff notification letter from the principal investigator (PI). Provide the postdoctoral scholar the letter at least 30 days in advance of layoff. Send a copy of the Layoff Notification letter to Graduate Studies and copy the Union. Process a separation of the postdoctoral scholar appointment in UC Path.
• How do postdocs submit their reimbursement requests for the childcare reimbursements? (Update 5/13/2026)
• 5/13/2026: Please follow the process located on our website under the "Childcare Reimbursement Process".
• How will the cost of the Postdoc childcare reimbursements and death benefits be covered? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: They are being built into the Composite Benefit Rates (CBR) for 23/24. BIA has published the CBR.
• Will Paid Time Off (PTO) and Sick Leave (SKL) still be reloaded on the postdoc anniversary date? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: Yes, PTO and SKL will still be dumped/reloaded on a postdoc's anniversary date. This is why it is important to still submit a case to your Service Channel to have this date updated annually.
• Can a postdoc use both Postdoc Paid Family Leave (PPFL) and Family and Medical Leave (FML)? For example, if a postdoc went on maternity leave on 12/24/22, can we retroactively provide PPFL? Can we run it concurrently with FML if they are eligible? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: PPFL and FML can run concurrently if they are FML eligible. If they are FML eligible code as FML to run concurrently, if not FML eligible then code as personal leave. Either way there is no disadvantage to the employee. The only difference is the FML postdoc is still eligible for 4 additional FML weeks, the non-FML only get the total 8 weeks of contract.
• Is the 8 weeks of Postdoc Paid Family Leave (PPFL) a lifetime allotment, per year or per event? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: Postdocs receive 8 weeks of PPFL per calendar year.
• Since the 8 weeks of Postdoc Paid Family Leave (PPFL) is available in its entirety at the beginning of the calendar year, if a postdoc uses the entire balance and leaves before the end of the year, will they have to pay back some of the PPFL? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: No the postdoc will not need to repay the PPFL.
• Are postdocs eligible for Pay for Family Care and Bonding (PFCB)? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: No, per the new memorandum of understanding (MOU), they are entitled to their own Postdoc Paid Family Leave, which is similar.
• If a postdoc uses Postdoc Paid Family Leave (PPFL) at the end of one calendar year for an event, can they use the new available 8 weeks provided in the next calendar year for the same event? Or are they limited to using 8 weeks for one event? (Posted March 21, 2023)
• 3/21/2023: They will be able to use the 8 weeks at the end of the calendar year for an event, and then once they receive the additional 8 weeks in the new calendar year, they can use the new allotment for the same event.