OPM urges agencies to inform reservists of rights

Federal managers and agency heads need to make sure that reservists called to duty in support of Operation Allied Force know their employment rights and benefits, the Office of Personnel Management says.

On April 27, President Clinton authorized the mobilization of reserve units for up to 270 days to assist NATO troops in the Balkans. According to OPM director Janice Lachance, the federal government is the largest single employer of armed forces reservists.

"Our first obligation as an employer is to make sure that those friends and colleagues who perform active military duty are able to leave their employment temporarily with the knowledge that their affairs are in order and their rights protected," Lachance said in a memo to heads of executive departments and agencies.

Under federal law, federal employees who perform active military duty are entitled to rights and benefits on such issues as pay and leave options, veterans' preference, and health and life insurance options. In addition, agencies must provide premium pay benefits to civilian employees who perform emergency work in support of Operation Allied Force.

OPM has published a complete list of rights and benefits of reservists called to support military operations in Kosovo on its Web site at: http://www.opm.gov/oca/compmemo/1999/KOSATT1.HTM.

Detailed information about agencies' authority and obligation to provide premium pay is also available on the OPM site at: http://www.opm.gov/oca/compmemo/1999/KOSATT2.HTM.