Policies

Military Leave / Re-employment

Central College honors and respects the rights and obligations of employees to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States in accordance with the Uniformed Services Employment and Re-employment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) and state law.   

An employee who is a member of, applies to be a member of, performs, has performed, applies to perform, or has an obligation to perform service in a uniformed service shall not be denied initial employment, reemployment, retention in employment, promotion, or any benefit of employment by Central College on the basis of that membership, application for membership, performance of service, application for service, or obligation.  Likewise, Central College prohibits retaliation against any employee who exercises rights or assists others in exercising rights under USERRA or comparable state law.

Re-employment Rights and Procedure

The following re-employment rights and procedures apply to all employees except temporary employees.

An employee or appropriate officer of the branch of the military in which the employee will be serving must give the employee’s supervisor or the Office of Human Resources written notice in advance of military service unless military necessity prevents the giving of notice or notice is otherwise impossible or unreasonable.  For faculty, the VPAA/Dean must be notified.

Re-employment is based on the period of military service and other conditions listed: 

1. Military service of less than 31 days – the employee must report back to work by the beginning of the first regularly scheduled work day that would fall 8 hours after the employee returns home from the place of military service. If due to no fault of the employee, timely reporting back to work would be impossible or unreasonable, the employee must report back to work as soon as possible. 
2. Military service of more than 30 days but less than 181 days – the employee must reapply for employment at the Human Resource Office not later than 14 days after military service is completed, or the next full calendar day when application becomes possible. The employee must also provide adequate documentation showing eligibility to return to work. In the case of faculty, the VPAA/Dean must be contacted not later than 14 days after military service is completed or the next full calendar day.
3. Military service of more than 180 days – the employee must reapply for employment at the Human Resource Office not later than 90 days after military service is completed. The employee must also provide adequate documentation showing eligibility to return to work.  In the case of faculty, the VPAA/Dean must be contacted with 90 days of completion of military service and provided with adequate documentation. 
4. The employee’s separation from military service was under honorable conditions. A DD214 or similar document is required. 
5. The cumulative length of the absence and of all previous absences for military service does not exceed five (5) years with certain exceptions provided in the USERRA. The two-week annual training sessions and monthly weekend drills mandated by statute for Reservists and National Guard members are exempt from the 5 year limitation. 
6. The college is not required to reemploy a person if its circumstances have changed so as to make such re-employment impossible or unreasonable such as, for example, a reduction in force. 
7. The reporting or application deadlines will be extended up to two years for employees who are hospitalized or convalescing because of a service-connected illness or injury. 
8. If reporting to work is impossible or unreasonable the period will be extended if necessary to accommodate a circumstance beyond the employee’s control. 
9. The college will consider it an unexcused absence in cases where an employee fails to report to work or to apply for reemployment rights within the required time limits. 

The college will make reasonable efforts to accommodate an employee’s disability so that the employee can be reemployed consistent with the requirements under the USERRA unless such accommodation will be of such difficulty or expense as to cause an undue hardship. 

Employees are not required to use vacation during absences due to military service requirements; however, they may do so upon request. Employees who follow the above procedure will accumulate seniority for the period of service in the Armed Forces and retain previously accumulated benefits, subject to rules and regulations that might be imposed in those plan designs. During any period of paid leave, the college will continue normal contributions towards the cost of benefits. When military service is unpaid, the employee will pay the cost of benefits. In addition, the employee will be eligible for any general increases in pay, or any approved benefits that occur during their absence. 

An employee may elect to continue his or her college health care benefits during the period military service is performed. In accordance with USERRA, those employees performing service of less than 31 days will pay no more than their current employee premium. Employees performing military service of 31 days or more will pay no more than 102% of the full premium cost. The maximum coverage of an employee and the employee’s dependents is the lesser of 24 months from the day the absence begins; or the day after the date on which the employee fails to apply for or return to a position of employment with the college. 

Employees who perform more than 180 days of military service before reemployment may only be discharged for cause for a period of one year from the date of reemployment. Employees who perform military service more than 30 days but less than 181 days before reemployment may only be discharged for cause for a period of 6 months after the date of reemployment.  

Military service includes active duty, active duty for training, initial act of duty for training; inactive duty training, full-time National Guard duty, and absence from work to determine fitness for any of the above types of duty. 

Armed forces includes Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force or Coast Guard, reserve duty in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast Guard, Army National Guard or Air National Guard, Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service, or any other category of persons designated by the President in time of war or emergency.