Duke to Supplement Pay for Employees Serving in Military Reserves

Duke University and Health System has approved a policy that will provide supplemental pay to employees who have been called to active military duty. The policy also waives dependent health care premiums for up to six months.

"At Duke we recognize that this can be a difficult time for the families of employees who are called to serve our country," said H. Clint Davidson Jr., vice president for Human Resources at Duke University and Health System. "We want to help such families of the Duke community manage the stress of these extraordinary times by easing the financial strain that they may experience."

When regular full-time Duke employees are called to active military duty and their regular military pay is less than their regular pay at Duke, the university will provide a monthly salary supplement for a period of up to six months. The supplement will represent the difference between their regular Duke pay and their military monthly salary, up to a maximum of $1,000 per month.

Currently, six Duke employees who are on active duty will benefit from this change. Overall, 75 to 100 Duke employees are part of a United States Armed Services Reserve unit.

"In addition to the pay supplement, Duke will pay the full premium for health insurance for any eligible, covered dependents of full-time employees called to temporary active military duty," Davidson added.

The policy covers the period beginning Jan. 1, 2003, and applies to those called to temporary active duty through June 30, 2003. The supplemental pay policy does not replace the existing Military Leave policy, and it will expire no later than July 1, 2003, at which time the need for the policy will be re-evaluated.

For more information, please visit the Duke HR web site or call 684-5600.