Employment Benefits

Units may be purchased by check or by regular automatic withdrawals from employees’ checking or savings accounts. The maximum number of units which may be purchased on behalf of any one child is 1,500. Federal income tax on the appreciation of tuition units is deferred or postponed until the units are used.

Credit Union
Finance and Administration employees are eligible to join the Southeast Financial Credit Union with a $1.00 membership fee and a minimum deposit of $5.00 to open a share (savings) account. The share account must have a minimum balance of $50.00 before a member is eligible for any other type account such as share draft (checking), Christmas club, share certificates, IRAs, or VISA accounts. Members with a minimum share account balance of $50.00 can apply for a loan or VISA account at a cost of $10.00 for a credit report.

Employees transferring from another department who are already enrolled in a state affiliated credit union other than Southeast Financial may continue their membership in their current credit union as well as joining Southeast Financial.

Contact Southeast Financial (741-3049) for more information.

Day Care Center
For state employees in need of child care facilities, the state provides an employee scholarship program to subsidize the cost of child care tuition for state employees, based on their income. The childcare provider selected for the employee scholarship program is Tomorrow’s Leaders Preschools, with locations at Wedgewood Avenue and Kirkwood Avenue, Nashville.

Deferred Compensation
Deferred Compensation Deferred Compensation is a benefit designed to provide employees an opportunity to supplement their retirement plan. Employees may choose to participate in tax advantaged supplemental retirement savings through the 401(k) plan and / or the 457 plan. Various investment options are offered. A minimum $20 monthly contribution is required to participate in the plans.

For the 401(k) plan, the state will match the first $20 of employee contribution per pay period for semi monthly or $40 monthly. The state matching contribution is subject to annual appropriation.

For further information on deferred compensation including investment options, call 1(800) 922-7772.

Discounts
State employees may be eligible for discounts offered to government workers by various private businesses. These discounts may vary from health club discounts to temporary free admission to state parks.

Tennessee State Parks offer employee discounts from October 1 through March 31 each year. Regular full-time state employees are entitled to a 50% discount on inns and cabins (subject to a 7 day reservation policy). Rooms are subject to availability and are restricted to non-business trips. State employees also get a 50% discount on camping fees, golf green fees, and cart rentals during off season. Contact the Department of Environment and Conservation, Parks Information (532-0001) for more information.

Employee Assistance Program
The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a confidential counseling and referral service for all employees and their dependents. The program offers up to 6 free counseling sessions per problem episode. All services are strictly confidential and can be accessed by calling 1-877-237-8574 (United Behavioral Health) 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Employee Health Service
The Employee Health Service, located on the 2nd floor, Central Services Building, provides a variety of free medical services to state employees. The clinic provides quick, efficient care to state employees for minor complaints and emergencies. The clinic has a part-time physician as well as nurse practitioners and licensed practical nurses on staff. Prescriptions can be written for medications not stocked by the clinic. In addition, the clinic offers tetanus immunizations and annual influenza immunizations (offered each fall). Clinic hours are 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. All services are provided by appointment. Allergy shots for patients requiring a physician on-site are given on Monday and Thursday from 1:00 to 2:45 PM by appointment. Other allergy patients may be seen by appointment Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 11:00 AM. Blood pressure checks are daily from 9:00 until 11:00 AM by appointment. Call 741-1709 for more information.

Flexible Benefits Plan
The Flexible Benefits Plan is a benefit program designed to help state employees pay less taxes. Under this program certain specific expenses can be deducted from an employee’s paycheck prior to taxes, resulting in a lower taxable income level.

• Insurance premiums (state group medical and dental insurance premiums) are automatically deducted pretax, unless the employee chooses to opt out of this feature. Depending on the amount of an employee’s insurance premium and the employee’s tax rate, this may save an employee anywhere from $50 to $450 a year in taxes. NOTE: The portion of your state group medical insurance premium that is paying for your automatic life insurance and special accident insurance is not eligible to be deducted pretax
  
• Medical expenses that are not covered by insurance, such as the insurance plan deductible or co-payment amounts, contact lenses or glasses, certain dental procedures, prescription drugs or their CO-payment amounts, and hearing aids can be deducted from your paycheck pretax
  
• Employees may request to have further deductions made every pay period to build an account to cover medical expenses and dependent day care expenses for the current year. After paying for these goods/services, the employee then may request reimbursement from their flexible benefits account. Reimbursement is guaranteed within 10 business days. The employee’s flexible benefits account is good for the current year only. If all the funds contributed to that account are not used by the end of the year, they are forfeited to the state. The flexible benefits deduction plan must be renewed by the employee every year (usually from November 15 to December 1).

Call 741-3131 for more information.

Higher Education Fee Discounts and Waivers
A 25% discount on undergraduate tuition at any state operated institution of higher learning in Tennessee is available to children 23 years of age or under of full time state employees.

Full-time state employees with six months of continuous state service are eligible to have tuition fees waived for one course from one state institution per semester.

The Public Higher Education Fee Discount form and the Public Higher Education Fee Waiver form are available in the Finance and Administration Human Resource Office. For further information on higher education discounts, click on Chapter 1540 on the Secretary of State Rules and Regulations web page.

Holidays
Each year Full-time State employees receive 11 holidays off with pay.

• Health Insurance
• Optional Term Life or Universal Life Insurance
• Optional Special Accident Insurance
• Dental Insurance

For more information on the state insurance plan options, visit the Division of Insurance Administration website.

Leave
State employees have, among others the following paid leave options available:

Annual Leave

• Full-time employees with 0-5 years of state service earn 1 day (7.5 hours) of annual leave per month to a maximum of 225 hours (30 days).
• Full-time employees with 5-10 years of state service earn 1½ days (11.3 hours) of annual leave per month to a maximum of 270 hours (36 days).
• Full-time employees with 10-20 years of state service earn 1¾ days (13.2 hours) of annual leave per month to a maximum of 292.5 hours (39 days).
• Full-time employees with over 20 years of state service earn 2 days (15 hours) of annual leave per month to a maximum of 315 hours (42 days).

Sick Leave

• All full-time employees accrue 1 day (7.5 hours) of sick leave per month, provided they work the major portion of that month.

Longevity
Longevity is a lump sum payment intended to reward and encourage long-term full-time employment with the state. At the completion of 36 months (3 years) of creditable state service (1,600 hours or more worked in a fiscal year), employees receive a payment of $100.00 for every year of creditable state service.

Parking
State employees have access to free parking in designated state parking lots with the display of a state parking tag.

Retirement
State employees are automatically members of the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS). However, employees must accrue 5 years of creditable state service before they are vested (guaranteed retirement benefits when age requirements are met). A year of service credit is granted for each year of full-time employment. Other types of service that may qualify as creditable if the necessary conditions are met include:

• Military service
• Educational leave
• Service rendered as a state employee or full-time public school teacher in a state other than Tennessee (out-of-state service)
• Prior state service
• Withdrawn service
• Accumulated sick leave upon retirement

Effective July 1, 1981, TCRS became non-contributory for Finance and Administration employees. This means that the state assumed all contributions to the employees’ retirement accounts. Employees who contributed to the retirement system prior to July 1, 1981 and who separate from the state before retirement may apply for a refund of the contributions made to their retirement account. By obtaining a refund, the employee loses all rights and benefits in the retirement system. Employees who began participating in TCRS after July 1, 1981 are not eligible for a refund upon separation from the state before retirement.

Members of TCRS must make a beneficiary designation. A member may designate one person, his estate, an institution, or more than one person as beneficiary. It is very important the beneficiary designation be current. Certain situations such as divorce, remarriage, death, etc. may warrant a change in beneficiary.

Vested members of TCRS become eligible for service retirement upon completion of 30 years of creditable service or upon attainment of age 60.

Further information about retirement benefits can be obtained by contacting TCRS (741-1971).

Service Awards
The State of Tennessee provides awards to appropriately recognize employees for ongoing service to state government. A commemorative certificate and gift are presented to employees at the completion of 5 years of creditable service and at each increment of 5 years additional creditable service thereafter. Beginning at 30 years of service or above, employees receive a plaque and gift given by the Governor or the Governor’s designee.

In 1999, Finance and Administration chose to enhance the standard State of Tennessee Service Award program by provided the certificates framed with an appropriately colored matting. The desired outcome was to encourage the five to twenty-five year recipients to display their certificate more often. Finance and Administration also chose to provide a broader choice of memento gifts to the recipients in order to increase enthusiasm for the program.

Service award recipients are given a pamphlet displaying their options for service awards. Employees also have the option of visiting the Human Resource Office and viewing actual samples of the awards in the display case.

To view the service awards offered by F&A, please click the following link. This page contains photo examples and may take a moment to load.
Service Awards

Wellness Program
The State Employee Wellness Program works to increase employees’ knowledge of options for healthier lifestyles through information and events that focus on improving behaviors affecting your health. Some specific benefits offered through the program include:

• Working Well Health Screenings
• MHIQ Health Risk Assessments
• Wellness Coaching
• Fitness Center Discounts
• Telephonic Tobacco Cessation
• Wellness Campaigns
• Wellness Seminars and Workshops

For more information regarding the Wellness Program, call (615) 741-8675.