Costco Connection - April 2007

Skyline’s human resources director. “We let them know we would be very flexible.”

Accommodating an
injured vet

While some veterans return home physically injured, a very small percentage actually require companies to make “reasonable accommodations” so the employees can perform their jobs, says ESGR’s

Palmer. Often, their injuries may require minor or no accommodation, or they may accept a new position within the firm.

For veterans with a service-connected physical or mental disability, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service (VR&E) provides a wide array of services. That office may initially arrange for a free work-site analysis of the returning employee’s needs.

In some cases, the accommodation may involve equipment and/or technology that enables the veteran to physically perform work. In other situations, a VR&E case manager may suggest a job restructuring to accommodate the vet’s limited abilities. In yet other cases, VR&E may pay for training and education, including college, so a veteran can return to work performing a different job, says Dr. Fred Steier, VR&E assistant director for rehabilitation services.

“We try to work hand in hand with the veteran and employer to find good, suitable employment for the veteran,” says Steier. “In a typical situation, we [VR&E] may share the cost of that accommodation with the employer.”

Coping with mental matters

According to experts, it is far more likely veterans will return with mental health issues. A 2004 study in the New England Journal of Medicine reported that nearly 30 percent of Army and Marine personnel returning from Iraq suffered a mental health problem, including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

If, say, a veteran requires a quieter environment, the VR&E could team with a company to determine that possibility, even helping to pay for sound-

Connecting

■ Beyond the Yellow Ribbon: www.dma.state. mn.us/returning_troops/btyr_overview.php

■ Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve:

(ESGR), www.esgr.mil

■ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’

Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service: www.vba.va.gov/bln/vre/vrs.htm

reducing materials or equipment. In a serious brain-injury case, says Steier, the VR&E may pay for a job coach so the veteran can learn new tasks.

Companies fretting about a veteran’s drug and alcohol problems, anger, concentration and alienation issues and a range of other mental health concerns can contact counselors and outreach workers at one of the more than 200 Veterans Affairs Vet Centers scattered across the country. Veterans themselves can contact the Vet Centers or access and receive referrals from a host of military and government agencies and nonprofits.

Adjusting to the “new normal”

Most returning veterans won’t require professional help, but they may need time to adjust to a “new normal” in the workplace and elsewhere, says John Morris, deputy state chaplain of the Minnesota Army National Guard. Morris was instrumental in launching that organization’s comprehensive reintegration program, Beyond the Yellow Ribbon (BYR), which involves educating the community, including employers.

Fellow employees should be sensitized to the veteran’s situation, says Morris. “For instance, don’t ask if they killed anybody,” he says. He strongly suggests that companies offer veterans a workplace reorientation, which could include a welcome-home ceremony and opportunities to discuss their experience.

“It’s in the company’s best interest to have a familiarization phase,” he says. “As a soldier in combat, I’ve left a fairly simple environment, because that’s all I’m concentrating on. Now I’m returning home to a complex environment, what with household, family, work and other duties. On top of that, if I’ve been away any length of time, my job responsibilities have probably changed. If you can help me adjust successfully, I’ll be a great employee.”

Morris recommends initially breaking down a more complex job into easily understood tasks. The BYR program encourages company supervisors to monitor veterans’ behavior—are they distracted, struggling with tasks or arguing with fellow employees?—and talk about performance and other issues in regular checkups.

For many small enterprises, reintegrating veterans into the workplace poses no problems. In fact, far from being a concern, these employees return with considerable assets that can assist companies.

“Many veterans have experienced life-and-death situations, and now they want to live,” says Morris. “They’ve picked up leadership skills and had tremendous responsibilities during their service. They are motivated and more focused than ever on being productive.” C

Harvey Meyer is a St. Louis Park, Minnesota, freelancer who writes for a variety of business, consumer and general-interest magazines.

Employee/
soldiers and
the law

THE FEDERAL Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) essentially offers departing soldiers a trade-off: In return for defending their country, they will be assured jobs at their companies when they return from service. Following are key USERRA provisions highlighted by Major Robert Palmer, strategic communications chief for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR).

■ Employees do not accrue vacation or sick days while serving in the military. Nor are companies required to provide health insurance if veterans are gone 31 days or longer. However, returning employees must be allowed to contribute to a pension plan, within three years, any amount they would have contributed if continuously employed.

■ Employees must apply for reemployment within a specified time after their return. This time varies depending upon length of service. But this time limit could extend to two years or more when an employee suffers a service-related injury.

■ Returning veterans must be “promptly reemployed” after submitting their application. They must be reinstated to their former position or a position of like seniority, status, benefits and rate of pay for which they are qualified.

■ If veterans return with physical and/or mental health issues, companies must make “reasonable accommodations” so they can return to work. These may vary according to each situation, but they could include adjusting job tasks, moving employees to different positions and offering them training.