Employers supporting their soldiers
When Basin Electric and Dakota Gas' employees deploy, they know they have the full support of their company behind them.
Dakota Gasification Company - January 27, 2010
Originally broadcast by KFYR TV
Reported by Retha Colclasure
Watch the video at this link: Employers supporting their soldiers
There are about 800 guardsmen with the North Dakota National Guard serving overseas. Most of them left full-time jobs behind. Employers have to protect those jobs when a service member is deployed, but some employers go above and beyond what's required by law.
Right now, three employees with Basin Electric are serving in three different countries. When they left, the company had to figure out how to re-distribute the workload, while making sure those soldiers knew they would have the full support of their employer behind them.
It's 10:00 a.m. in North Dakota, 7:00 p.m. in Africa, where Kelby Hovey is, and 5:00 p.m. in Pristina and Kosovo, where Jill Thomas and Kim Miller are currently serving.
"These people are taking the time to serve us and our country. We don't want they and their families to worry about stuff when they're gone," said Basin Electric Human Resources Manager Sharon Klein.
When Basin's employees deploy, they know they have the full support of their company behind them.
"All of their benefits stay in place, their families retain medical insurance, we contribute on a pro-rated basis to 401K," said Klein.
Basin also pays the difference between a soldier's military pay and regular salary at work. The fact that Basin does more than what the law requires isn't missed by their employees.
"It's been very welcoming to see all the support Basin Electric has offered," said Miller.
"The support has been wonderful. I keep in contact with my supervisor periodically. When he writes he just wants to make sure I don't worry about what`s going on at home," said Thomas.
Thomas is a warehouse manager at the Dakota Gasification Company. A job she got because of her heavy equipment training with the Guard.
Kelby Hovey has been one of Basin's pilots for a few years, and is now flying aircraft in Africa.
"Always very supportive. Our chief pilot has always been very understanding and supportive of the Guard and knows how important the commitment is to me," said Hovey.
Basin Electric also ships care packages to soldiers overseas, and sometimes sends laptops so they can communicate with friends and family.
Basin Electric gives returning employees 90 days to reacquaint themselves with friends and family at home before they have to return to work, once they're released from military duties. The three women I talked to all plan on using some or all of that time to take a break before transitioning back to their regular jobs.
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1600 E. Interstate Ave.
PO Box 5540
Bismarck, ND 58506-5540 USA
701.221.4400
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420 County Road 26
Beulah, ND 58523-9400 USA
701.873.2100
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