Equal opportunities

We use gender-neutral language. Reality is shaped by the language we use. If we want our texts to address both men and women, then our words need to reflect that; we therefore use male and female or gender-neutral forms.
 
Guidelines on gender-fair language at BFH help students and staff to use gender-neutral language.

Other good examples of useful wording:

Everyone pursuing a career thinks about how to combine professional life with private life. With children in the picture, this becomes a real balancing act and a carefully constructed work-life balance can become unstable. Managers need to manage this balancing act from two perspectives. On the one hand, even those holding senior positions need to balance their professional and family/private lives. On the other hand, they also need to address their employees’ need to achieve a good work-life balance. They are responsible for working conditions and play a leading role in creating a good working environment. They need to act as role models and set an example of how employees can handle the dual challenge of professional and family life.

The brochure ‘Familienfreundlichkeit an Hochschulen’ (‘Family friendliness at universities’) provides suggestions for an HR policy focussed on achieving balance at universities and highlights the legal background.

A limited number of nursery places are available to BFH staff and students. If you’d like to take advantage of this offer, the relevant documents are on the BFH intranet. The fees are based on your income and are in line with the cantonal rates described in the Verordnung über die Angebote der sozialen Integration (Decree on Social Integration Offer ASIV) issued by the Canton of Bern.
 
You can apply for a nursery place using the online form on the BFH intranet. If you’re a new student or member of staff and don’t have access to the intranet, please contact Corinne Badertscher. BFH cannot guarantee the availability of nursery places but is pleased to be able to contribute towards overcoming care difficulties by offering these places.

Parental leave

Mothers are entitled to 16 weeks’ paid maternity leave on full pay. Fathers and adoptive parents receive 10 days of paid leave. Upon request, mothers and fathers may take up to six months of unpaid leave, provided that day-to-day operations can be maintained.

Reduced working hours following birth or adoption

Following the birth or adoption of a child, staff are entitled to up to a 20% reduction in working hours in their role, on request, provided that there are no significant organisational or operational reasons that prevent this. The level of employment must not fall below 60% as a result.
Reductions of more than 20%, or reductions below the minimum level of 60% employment specified in Art. 60c, can also be agreed with the manager’s consent.

Current demographic trends mean that an increasing number of people in work are also caring for relatives. Unlike providing childcare, caring for older people and other dependent relatives cannot easily be planned for and is associated with a greater mental burden.
 
Staff at Bern University of Applied Sciences who are affected by this issue can request up to four working days of paid leave per year in the event of the sudden illness of a close relative, in order to arrange or ensure urgent care (Art. 156 para. 1(a) in conjunction with para. 3 PV).