Many employers provide full medical benefits for reservists

October 11 2001 - With thousands of military reservists being called for active duty after September 11, a Watson Wyatt survey shows many employers planning to continue providing full medical benefits for reservists - above and beyond what is required. This conclusion comes from a Watson Wyatt survey of 51 employers representing approximately 500,000 full-time employees. The survey looked at how employers are making decisions to handle compensation and medical benefits for affected reservist employees and their families.

"Employers are focused on providing support for their employees -- especially those called for duty," said Rich Murdock, a senior group and health care consultant with Watson Wyatt. "Providing the security of continued benefits can go a long way in maintaining employee loyalty and morale, and the cost for most employers is typically minimal, as reservists make up a small percentage of their total workforce."

Among other things, the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) sets the minimum rights that a reservist employee is entitled to and requires employers to extend medical coverage for up to 18 months at the employee's expense. 47% of employers surveyed said that they would exceed the statutory requirement for reservists and their dependents and would provide full medical benefits for some period of time. In fact, 22% of employers offering full medical coverage planned to do so for a minimum of five months with some intending to do so for more than nine months, according to the survey.

8 in 10 employers had compensation policies in place for reservists. When asked how they would handle compensation, 60% of surveyed employers reported that they planned to institute differential pay policies for some period of time to make up the difference between regular and military pay.

"Employers are optimistic about their ongoing ability to support reservists," added Murdock. "But employers should look at contingency plans to make sure they are adequately staffed going forward, and can deliver on the promise of continued pay and benefits."

More generally, NewsWire reports that JP Morgan Chase has agreed to continue full salary and benefits for reservists recalled to active duty, and reinstate them at the end of their tour of duty. Conoco; the state of Florida; IBM; Lockheed Martin; Lucent; National City Bank; Northrop Grumman; Safeway; Sprint, Southern Fabricators, Inc.; the Tennessee Valley Authority; and Walmart have committed to pay the difference between their employees' salary and their military pay, and continue health care coverage for them and their families.

You can read the complete summary of the Watson Wyatt report at: http://www.watsonwyatt.com/reservistreport