Taking Leave or Furlough

A leave of absence with pay authorized by your employer is not considered an interruption or break in service. If you are a permanent part-time employee, the credited service granted is proportionate to that which would have been earned as a permanent full-time employee.

For a full-time member, a leave of absence without pay (LWOP) that does not exceed 10 accumulated days in any calendar year is not considered an interruption or break in service. However, if the leave of absence exceeds 10 accumulated days, whether taken consecutively or through intermittent hours scattered throughout the calendar year, your service credit for that year will be reduced by the equivalent number of days you were on leave of absence without pay.

A part-time member has their service calculated on actual hours in pay status; therefore any reduction in hours paid would reduce the service credit earned.

It is possible that a period of absence without pay could adversely impact your average monthly salary calculation if it occurs in one of your high earnings years.

You are unable to claim the service from a leave of absence or furlough, unless the leave of absence without pay was because you were unable to work due to an on-the-job injury or occupational illness for which you were receiving benefits under the provisions of Workers’ Compensation, or if the leave of absence was due to a call to active duty in the armed forces.

While Receiving Workers' Compensation

If you did have a leave of absence that exceeded 10 days while you were receiving Workers’ Compensation benefits you may claim the service by completing the following form:

For assistance with this form, contact the Pre-Retirement Services Unit by phone at (907) 465-5700, or email .

An indebtedness will be established for the contributions that you would have made had you remained an active employee during the period of leave of absence without pay for Workers’ Compensation, less an amount equal to contributions that would have been made for the first 10 days of leave of absence without pay. Interest will begin to accrue on the day you return to work or terminate employment.

Leave for Active Duty

If you are voluntarily or involuntarily called to active duty in the armed forces of the United States while actively employed and return to work with your employer within 90 days after the date of discharge from the military service, you are not required to make retroactive contributions to receive credited service for the period of leave of absence. You must have been discharged in good standing in order to claim the service. To claim the service, please submit a written request, along with a copy of your discharge papers or a copy of the active duty orders showing the date of release, to the Division of Retirement and Benefits.

TRS DB Plan

See section "Leave of Absence without Pay (LWOP)" of the Claiming Service Credit brochure .

Related Forms

• Certification of Leave of Absence Without Pay form
• Workers’ Compensation and LWOP Claim and Verification

For more information on Service Credit, visit our Defined Benefit Retirement Plan page.

PERS Defined Contribution (DCR) Plan

A leave of absence with pay authorized by your employer is not considered an interruption or break in service. If you are a permanent part-time employee, the credited service granted is proportionate to that which would have been earned as a permanent full-time employee.

For a full-time member, a leave of absence without pay (LWOP) that does not exceed 10 accumulated days in any calendar year is not considered an interruption or break in service. However, if the leave of absence exceeds 10 accumulated days, whether taken consecutively or through intermittent hours scattered throughout the calendar year, your service credit for that year will be reduced by the equivalent number of days you were on leave of absence without pay.

A part-time member has their service calculated on actual hours in pay status; therefore, any reduction in hours paid would reduce the service credit earned.

You are unable to claim the service from a leave of absence or furlough, unless the leave of absence was due to a call to active duty in the armed forces. If you are voluntarily or involuntarily called to active duty in the armed forces of the United States while actively employed and return to work with your employer within 90 days after the date of discharge from the military service, you may elect to make up all or part of your contributions for the period of military leave of absence. The employer will make their contributions to the member’s account proportionate to what the member contributes. If the member does not elect to make up their contributions, they will not receive the employer match to their accounts. You must have been discharged in good standing in order to claim the service. To claim the service, please submit a written request, along with a copy of your discharge papers or a copy of the active duty orders showing the date of release, to the Division of Retirement and Benefits.

TRS Defined Contribution (DCR) Plan

If you are on leave without pay and work less than 172 days in the school year, it will affect your service. For more information, please view the TRS Service Credit chart.

You are unable to claim the service from a leave of absence or furlough, unless the leave of absence was due to a call to active duty in the armed forces. If you are voluntarily or involuntarily called to active duty in the armed forces of the United States while actively employed and return to work with your employer within 90 days after the date of discharge from the military service, you may elect to make up all or part of your contributions for the period of military leave of absence. The employer will make their contributions to the member’s account proportionate to what the member contributes. If the member does not elect to make up their contributions, they will not receive the employer match to their accounts. You must have been discharged in good standing in order to claim the service. To claim the service, please submit a written request, along with a copy of your discharge papers or a copy of the active duty orders showing the date of release, to the Division of Retirement and Benefits.

AlaskaCare members are State employees in the following groups:

• AVTEC
• Confidential
• Correctional Officers
• Marine Engineers
• TEAME (Mt. Edgecumbe Teachers)
• Supervisory
• Unlicensed Vessel Personnel/Inland Boatmen’s Union (IBU)
• Employees not covered by collective bargaining (Exempt)

When you are separated for layoff, a notice of coverage termination is sent to our vendor, Inspira Financial. Inspira Financial will then send a notice of COBRA rights and an application for continuation of coverage by mail to you. If you wish to continue your health coverage for you and your eligible dependents, you must elect continuation of coverage on the form provided by Inspira Financial and you must do so within 60 days of when the initial notice is issued to you. Payment for coverage, as described in the notice, must be made when due. Premium amounts will be listed in the initial notice and can also be found on our COBRA medical coverage web page shown below.

You may elect the same level of coverage as your active plan, or you may elect a lower level of coverage. For example, if you are covered under the medical plan and have elected the standard plan, you may elect COBRA continuation coverage under either the standard plan or the economy plan. Additionally, you may elect COBRA continuation coverage under the medical plan only; or under the medical plan and under the dental plan and/or the vision plan. You have a right to continue coverage for up to 18 months. If you elect COBRA, you do not need to sign up for health care under the Affordable Care Act. However, being eligible for COBRA does not limit your eligibility for coverage for a tax credit through the Marketplace.

Learn more about COBRA Health Coverage Continuation.

Alaska Health Care Exchange

Supplemental Annuity Plan Participants

A layoff separation is considered a termination of employment by the Supplemental Annuity Plan (SBS-AP) and allows you to withdraw your accounts once you have been separated from employment for 60 days. You are not required to remove your funds simply because you have separated. You may leave your contributions in the plan and continue your retirement investing in order to meet your goals for the future. Experts say most people will live on retirement benefits longer than they worked to earn them.

If you are planning on rolling your SBS-AP funds to another retirement plan, please be sure to compare the fees for the services you will receive. The SBS-AP management and administrative fees are very low compared to the private sector.

If you must withdraw your SBS-AP funds, you will need to consider the following:

• You may elect to maintain your account, rollover all or a portion of your account to another qualified plan or elect one of the plan's payment options, which include full or partial lump sum withdrawal, periodic payments, and annuities.
• SBS-AP funds are taxable income as you receive them and the plan is required to withhold 20% for federal income tax on lump sum distributions. You may want to choose a method of payment that spreads your account balance across tax years. There is also a potential 10% tax penalty for early withdrawal prior to age 59 ½.
• You must wait 60 days from your separation date before you can access your funds. If you reemploy with an SBS-AP employer before the 60-day period is up, you will not be able to access your funds.
• Keep in mind that in order to access retirement funds, you must satisfy IRS bona fide termination rules.

For general questions regarding your SBS account, call the Empower Retirement customer service contact center at (800) 232-0859 or visit the Empower website, akdrb.com .

To schedule an appointment with an Empower Retirement Plan Advisor (at no cost) for a financial account review, and/or to discuss your investment and withdrawal options in detail, please call (800) 526-0560, email , or use Empower’s online scheduler .

To make an appointment with a Retirement and Benefits Counselor, please call (800) 821-2251 or use our online scheduler.

Public Employees’ Retirement System

Defined Benefit Members wishing to withdraw contributions from the system need to be aware that a refund of contributions forfeits all future benefits, including retiree health insurance coverage, unless they return to PERS work in future. If they return to PERS work in the future, they must choose whether to return to their original DB PERS tier within 30 days of rehire, and an indebtedness will be set up to repay refunded DB contributions, plus interest.

PERS Defined Contribution Plan (DCR) Members

A layoff separation is considered a termination of employment by the PERS Defined Contribution Retirement Plan (DCR) and allows you to take a withdrawal once separated from employment for 60 days. You are not required to remove your funds simply because you have separated. You may leave your contributions in the plan and continue your retirement investing in order to meet your goals for the future. Experts say most people will live on retirement benefits longer than it took to earn them. Your contributions can be left in the plan or rolled into a tax-qualified plan with another employer or with a private sector provider to help you maintain your retirement savings.

If you are planning on rolling your PERS DCR funds to another retirement plan, please be sure to compare the fees for the services you will receive. The PERS DCR management and administrative fees are very low compared to the private sector. Also please keep in mind that if you rollover or refund PERS DCR funds (even if it’s only a partial withdrawal), you may forfeit unvested employer matching contributions. If you return to PERS DCR service in future after moving money out of the DCR plan, you will start over on the vesting schedule for employer matching contributions.

If you must withdraw your PERS DCR funds, you will need to consider the following:

• You may elect to maintain your account, rollover all or a portion of your account to another qualified plan, or elect one of the plan’s payment options, which include full or partial lump sum withdrawal, periodic payments, and annuities.
• PERS DCR funds are taxable income as you receive them, and the plan is required to withhold 20% for federal income tax on lump sum withdrawals. You may want to choose a method of payment that spreads your account balance across tax years. There is also a potential 10% tax penalty for early withdrawal prior to age 59 ½.
• You must wait 60 days from your separation date before you can access your funds. If you reemploy with a PERS DCR employer before the 60 day period is up you will not be able to access your funds.
• Keep in mind that in order to access retirement funds, you must satisfy IRS bona fide termination rules.

To make an appointment with a Retirement and Benefits Counselor for a review of your accounts and benefit eligibility, please call (800) 821-2251 or use our online scheduler .

For general questions regarding your DCR investment account, call the Empower Retirement customer service contact center at (800) 232-0859 or visit the Empower website, akdrb.com .

To schedule an appointment with an Empower Retirement Plan Advisor (at no cost) for a financial account review, and/or to discuss your investment and withdrawal options in detail, please call (800) 526-0560, email , or use Empower’s online scheduler .

Teachers’ Retirement System

TRS Defined Benefit Plan (DB) Members

Vested TRS Defined Benefit members may be eligible for retirement at the time of a layoff separation. For TRS Tier I, early retirement eligibility is at age 50, and normal retirement eligibility at age 55. For TRS Tier II, early retirement eligibility is at age 55, and normal retirement eligibility at age 60. Members in Tiers I and II may retire at any age with 20 years of paid-up eligible service. Members contemplating retirement should check with their human resources office to determine the effect of retirement on layoff rights. Layoff rights are not within the scope of the Division of Retirement and Benefits. To obtain a projection of benefits for retirement, call (800) 821-2251 or email . Keep in mind that if you are retiring, you must satisfy IRS bona fide termination rules.

TRS Defined Contribution Plan (DCR) Members

A layoff separation is considered a termination of employment by the TRS Defined Contribution Retirement Plan (DCR) and allows you to take a withdrawal once separated from employment for 60 days. You are not required to remove your funds simply because you have separated. You may leave your contributions in the plan and continue your retirement investing in order to meet your goals for the future. Experts say most people will live on retirement benefits longer than it took to earn them. Your contributions can be left in the plan or rolled into a tax-qualified plan with another employer or with a private sector provider to help you maintain your retirement savings.

If you are planning on rolling your TRS DCR funds to another retirement plan, please be sure to compare the fees for the services you will receive. The TRS DCR management and administrative fees are very low compared to the private sector. Also please keep in mind that if you rollover or refund TRS DCR funds (even if it’s only a partial withdrawal), you may forfeit unvested employer matching contributions. If you return to TRS DCR service in future after moving money out of the DCR plan, you will start over on the vesting schedule for employer matching contributions.

If you must withdraw your TRS DCR funds, you will need to consider the following:

• You may elect to maintain your account, rollover all or a portion of your account to another qualified plan, or elect one of the plan’s payment options, which include full or partial lump sum withdrawal, periodic payments, and annuities.
• TRS DCR funds are taxable income as you receive them, and the plan is required to withhold 20% for federal income tax on lump sum withdrawals. You may want to choose a method of payment that spreads your account balance across tax years. There is also a potential 10% tax penalty for early withdrawal prior to age 59 ½.
• You must wait 60 days from your separation date before you can access your funds. If you reemploy with a TRS DCR employer before the 60 day period is up you will not be able to access your funds.
• Keep in mind that in order to access retirement funds, you must satisfy IRS bona fide termination rules.

To make an appointment with a Retirement and Benefits Counselor for a review of your accounts and benefit eligibility, please call (800) 821-2251 or use our online scheduler.

For general questions regarding your DCR investment account, call the Empower Retirement customer service contact center at (800) 232-0859 or visit the Empower website, akdrb.com .

To schedule an appointment with an Empower Retirement Plan Advisor (at no cost) for a financial account review, and/or to discuss your investment and withdrawal options in detail, please call (800) 526-0560, email , or use Empower’s online scheduler .