(A) The County encourages and supports employees who choose to serve our nation in the armed forces. In certain cases where an employee is called to military service, either for active duty or annual training, that employee may be entitled to reinstatement/reemployment and other rights under the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (“USERRA”). To qualify under USERRA, the employee's separation from military service must be under honorable conditions and he/she must meet the other requirements of the law. In order to qualify for County-sponsored benefits, military service must be in compliance with the following conditions:
(1) Eligibility: An employee who must be absent from work due to military duty (either voluntary or involuntary) must provide advance notice to his/her department head as soon as possible, along with a copy of his/her military orders which identifies the time period for the leave as specifically as possible.
(2) Reinstatement: In order to be eligible for USERRA and County-sponsored benefits, employees returning from a military leave lasting fewer than thirty one (31) days, must report back to work at the beginning of the first regularly scheduled work day following the completion of military service.
(3) Reemployment: In those situations where military leave lasts more than thirty (30) days but less than one hundred eighty-one (181) days, an employee must submit an application for reemployment within fourteen (14) days of the completion of military service to be eligible for USERRA and County-sponsored benefits. An employee on a military leave that lasts longer than one hundred eighty-one (181) days must submit an application for reemployment within ninety (90) days of the completion of military service. In any case where the military leave exceeds more than thirty (30) days, the employee must provide official military documentation identifying the period of military service to establish that the application for reemployment was timely and that the discharge was honorable.
(B) Benefits: Upon reemployment, an employee restored to the level of benefits attained had he/she provided continuous service to the County and as a result, all rights and benefits determined by length of service (including vacation, sick and personal time) will reflect continuous employment. In addition, an employee will be eligible for health benefits from the County's plan (if a current member) on a secondary basis (to any coverage provided by the U.S. Armed Forces), for up to twelve (12) months, so long as he/she continues to pay his/her employee contribution.
(C) Compensation: An employee will be permitted up to four (4) weeks of paid military leave per calendar year provided that he/she has completed one (1) year of service with the County. Compensation will be computed by taking the employee's hourly rate of pay, multiplied by forty (40) hours, less the earnings received from military service. This compensation is contingent upon the County's payroll department receiving adequate advance written notice of the military leave and official military documentation indicating the amount of earnings received while on military leave. New employees (those with less than one (1) year of service may elect to use paid time off in conjunction with military leave.