The Maternity Protection Act (de) stipulates: "Expecting mothers are not permitted to perform heavy, physical labor or to work with or amongst materials, substances, radiation, dust, gases or vapors or in extreme elements, including heat, cold, wet, vibrations or noise that could be deemed potential hazardous to their health." - Section 4(1).

More information about employment restrctions, hazardous chemical stubstances, biological working materials, and physical harmful factors, to which expecting or nursing mothers should not be exposed, is available in the Maternity Protection Act.

The employer is obligated to evaluate the type, extent, and duration of the danger for employment where expecting or nursing mothers can be exposed to danger. Experts can be entrusted to conduct the evaluation.

Anyone who does not intentionally brief or negligently briefs an expecting or nursing mother on the regulations or who employs an expecting or nursing mother against the protection regulations is subject to criminal prosecution.

You can contact the University Medical Center or Staff Unit: Occupational and Radiation Protection for the necessary evaluation of danger or if you have questions.

According to the State Travel Expense Law, costs for an accompanying person can be reimbursed if the primary traveler is still nursing. Otherwise there is no possibility to have the costs reimbursed for an accompanying person caring for the child. We strongly recommend speaking with the Travel Management and Benefits Office (Division 8.3) in advance.

Staffmembers are entitled to vacation during maternity leave. Vacation days are calculated as they are during regular periods of employment. Entitlement to vacation is reduced by one twelfth for every full month of parental leave. Part-time employees are entitled to vacation during parental leave. You can find instructions on how to calculate vacation in the RWTH vacation handbook in the intranet.

Health insurance companies pay a maternity leave stipend for employees, who go on maternity leave. As the employer, RWTH – via the LBV – is responsible for paying a stipend equal to the difference up to sum of the previous average net salary.

Divison 7.2 establishes a PSP element for all cases, through which the paid maternity leave stipend and the reimbursement from the health insurance companies are expensed. This prevents University institutions from being burdened with advance financing or from needing to wait for reimbursement from the health insurance companies for the project account.

This regulation does not apply to civil servants. These individuals should contact Division 8.5 for information.

If a position is funded from the budget, HSP, QVM, or 94-funds, a subsitute can be hired starting the first day of maternity of leave. Informatin about the process can be found in the previous question. If the position is funded from other sources, the hiring of a substitute – independent from cost neutrality – can depend on the conditions of approval. Please consult with Division 4.2 - Management of Third Party Funds in individual cases. This regulation does not apply to civil servants. These individuals should contact Division 8.5 for information.

As parental leave cannot legally be requested until after the birth, the employment contract cannot initially extend to include the parental leave. An extension of the contract beyond the duration of maternity leave is possible, if financing is secured and the prerequisites for an unfounded fixed term employment are fulfilled pursuant to Section 14(2) Part-Time Work and Fixed-Term Employment Law – TzBfG. Please consult with Divisions 8.1 and 8.2 in individual cases.

As a family-friendly university RWTH aims to avoid different handling practices for salaried employees and civil servants. For this reason, it will centrally finance a subsitute for civil servants during the given period until further notice. This regulation is of course subject to financing conditions.

An employee is entitled to work part-time during parental leave if the employment has been in effect for more than six months, and no immediate operational reasons oppose the entitlement.

There is an additional requirement that the working time must be reduced to between 15 and 32 hours per week (for births until August 31, 2021: between 15 and 30 hours per week) for at least two months.

The employer must be informed of the the part-time employment in writing at least seven weeks before employment begins; if employment occurs between the ages of three and eight of the child, the deadline is 13 weeks.

Fixed-term employment contracts are not extended as a result of parental leave. Certain exceptions apply to academic staff members whose fixed-term contracts are subject to the regulations according to the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz, WissZeitVG for short.

In cases of fixed-term contracts for academic staff regulated by Section 2 (1) WissZeitVG, the duration of a fixed-term employment contract will be extended, upon agreement with the employee, by those time periods, during which an employee has not worked due to being protected by maternity leave guidelines or having availed herself of the right to take parental leave (Section 2 (5) WissZeitVG).

For more information, please contact Divison 8.1.

The deputy chair or deputy member assumes the position. If you have questions, please contact Department 1.

The Family Services Center in the Equal Opportunities Office provides information and advising to (expecting) parents on the topics maternity leave, parental leave, parenting allowance, and childcare, and supports them with making their plans.

Division 4.2 - Management of Third Party Funds advises institutions on any settlement questions with the respective project (sponsor). As there are thousands of different programs at RWTH Aachen, which fund employees' positions, project-specific advising is required.

The Department of Human Resources offers advising for all human resources matters.