May 1, 2026

newsletter overview

Keep scrolling to read about these important topics:

  • Know your contract: Paid Sick and Safe Leave, Bereavement Leave, and Unpaid Time Off

  • Paid Family Leave

  • Monitoring course registration

  • Upcoming events and important dates

Under our contract, adjunct faculty have the right to paid sick and safe leave, paid bereavement leave, and unpaid time off. Below is a brief guide detailing the specifics of each type of leave.

Paid Sick and Safe Leave

Under our contract, adjunct faculty may use up to seven paid sick days per academic year, with the following limits per term:

  • Fall: up to 4 days

  • J-term: up to 3 days

  • Spring: up to 4 days

  • Summer: up to 3 days

Paid bereavement leave

Adjunct faculty may take up to five consecutive days of paid bereavement leave following the death of a covered family member. The leave must begin within two weeks of the death.

Additional provisions include:

  • Up to 3 additional unpaid days for travel more than 150 miles from New York City (must be taken immediately after the paid leave)

  • Up to 5 paid days of reproductive loss leave in the event of pregnancy loss, stillbirth, failed adoption, or failed surrogacy

Note: Paid Bereavement Leave (a benefit we currently have) is not the same as Paid Family Leave (a benefit adjunct faculty still do not have but which we are fighting for.

How to Call Out for Illness or Bereavement

To take sick and safe leave or bereavement leave, simply email your Academic Chair or Director and your school’s HR stating that you are taking sick and safe leave on a specific date. You should also notify your students that you will be out.


You do not need to find class coverage and do not need to schedule a makeup session if you are calling out for illness or bereavement within the stated limits for taking days off. If you are asked to do either, please notify HR and contact the union immediately.

unpaid time off

Under our contract, adjunct faculty with reappointment rights (i.e., who qualify for benefits in Article X, section (A)) can decline reappointment* and take unpaid time off for up to one academic year. This unpaid leave allows adjunct faculty to retain their reappointment rights and maintain their existing service eligibility for contributions to the annuity plans. The criteria are as follows:

  • An adjunct faculty member who has had appointments for two semesters in each of the previous four (4) Academic Years, may decline re-appointment for one (1) academic year.

  • An adjunct faculty member who has had appointments for eight (8) semesters during the previous four (4) Academic Years, may decline re-appointment for one (1) academic year.

  • An adjunct faculty member who has had appointments in one semester for six (6) consecutive Academic Years, may decline a re-appointment for any one (1) semester.


*If you plan to decline reappointment and take unpaid leave, do not inform your department prior to receiving your May 21st reappointment letter. You must be sure to use language asserting your Article X section (C) rights. Please consult with a union rep at nyu@actuaw.org for assistance in drafting your notification.

Paid Family Leave Update - A Major Step Forward

Because of a legal exemption in New York State law, academic workers can only access paid family leave if their employers choose to provide it.

So far, NYU has not extended this benefit to adjunct faculty.

As a result, adjunct faculty are denied the same protections that millions of New York workers already receive under state law, including:

  • Up to 12 weeks of leave at 67% pay

  • Coverage for bonding with a new child, caregiving, and military family needs

  • Job protection and continued health insurance

On Thursday, April 23, nearly 60 academic workers and elected officials gathered in front of the Paulson Center to call on NYU to end its delays and provide paid family leave to adjunct faculty now.

That same day, NYU agreed to meet with union representatives to discuss the union’s paid family leave proposal.

This is a major step forward. It represents a real opportunity to win this long-overdue benefit and to demonstrate that adjunct faculty expect to be properly valued as members of the NYU community, especially as we begin laying the groundwork for bargaining our next contract in 2028.

But progress depends on visible, collective pressure. We need to demonstrate the full strength of our shared voice.

What You Can Do

Sign the union’s letter to President Linda Mills calling for paid family leave for adjunct faculty.

More than 900 adjunct faculty have already signed on. Add your name today. Every signature strengthens our position and shows that adjunct faculty stand united in demanding this basic protection.

MONITORING COURSE REGISTRATION

In recent semesters, adjunct faculty have noticed that their assigned courses do not always appear visible on Albert during the enrollment period. For those with reappointment rights, this can lead to the course being canceled for insufficiency of registration and the adjunct faculty member denied course load reduction pay per the contract. We believe that if the course cancels because it is not available for students to register, and the adjunct’s course load has not been met, the university is responsible to pay course load reduction pay if the course cancels for insufficiency of enrollment and the adjunct faculty member possesses reappointment rights. 


We recommend taking screenshots of the “student” face of Albert regularly. Such a record can prove vital, if a course cancellation later leads to a grievance. To assist faculty, we have prepared these instructions for finding courses on the student facing Albert site.

  • Come grab a drink and get to know fellow NYU Adjuncts at Vol de Nuit, a bar near the Washington Square Park campus (148 West 4th Street, entrance inside the courtyard; there is no sign!). 

    Pizza will be provided (vegan option available), and you can purchase beer, wine, and soft drinks at the bar.

    Attend to meet colleagues, ask questions, bring up any concerns you have, and learn how to get involved with our union’s organizing efforts.

Friday, May 1: May Day Rally

Today is Friday, May 1 - International Workers Day! This day commemorates the fight for the eight-hour workday. For more than 100 years, it has been a day for workers of every kind to come together and affirm our dignity and our commitment to one another and to creating a more just and equitable world.

Join with your fellow adjunct faculty, UAW members, and union members from all over NYC this Friday to celebrate the dignity of our work and to take a stand against the rising tide of fascism and the assault on academic freedom, higher ed jobs, and the very educational mission of our universities.

3 PM at The New School (63 5th Ave.) with the NY Metro Coalition for Higher Ed

4 PM in Washington Square Park with UAW and the NYC Central Labor Council

  • Then, at 4pm, we will join the citywide May Day demonstration and march in Washington Square Park. Our UAW contingent will meet at this time by the Garibaldi statue. Join us!