Browsing: Leave without pay

Q. I have been a federal employee since 1993 with the Veterans Affairs Department. Since 9/11, I have had five years of being called on orders to support operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom and contingency operations. While I was on leave without pay during these five years, do I still get retirement credit? Meaning it is like I never left federal service. (My retirement year would be 2023 with 30 years.) Also, can I buy these five years of war time credit toward my retirement, so in 2023 I will have a total of 35 years of service credit?

Q. I received a letter from shared services concerning leave without pay taken in 1982 and 1985 for maternity leave. I took over six months’ worth. How can they just now contact me after 31 years? I was never informed by any management that it would affect my retirement comp date, nor did shared services ever contact me to let me know it could have been paid back after all these years. When I called them, they said they do audits of files randomly and mine was picked. It now affects my retirement by one year and four months, which…

Q. It’s permanent change of station time for me again as a military spouse. My current command is saying they will only grant 90 days of leave without pay and, if I don’t find employment within 90 days, they will process my resignation 50. This is the first time a command has said they would only grant 90 days of LWOP. In the past, it has been two six-month LWOP 50s, which I never used. And 150-day increments which I also did not use up. I’m concerned about not being able to find employment within 90 days due to the…

Q. I just had a baby and plan on being a stay-at-home mom. However, I want to complete five years of service so I am vested in the pension plan, so I will be returning for three weeks after maternity leave to be eligible when I reach retirement age. I will have used one week of leave without pay. Does this count toward calculating my five years of service?

Q. I am a FERS employee with slightly more than 32 years of service and eligible to retire. I would like to hold off retiring until January, when I will receive full credit for my sick leave in computing my years of service.  However, I may have the opportunity soon to move into a nonfederal position to start my second career this spring. Can I ask to go on leave without pay until January and delay my effective retirement date for about six to seven months? And, while on LWOP, can I work at this new job? If it makes…