Think I secured a dual status federal job

Received stamped letter of nomination for a GS-2210 position. Called the head HR lady and started the transitioning paper work from active duty to gs/guard . Called the person who interviewed me for a thank you and he thanked me and said can't wait to have new blood in the shop. Tentative start date was mid July .I am excited, I have been searching for months and my separation was drawing near.

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Mitechniq

Welcome to the Guard,

You will find the Guard to be very family oriented with highly skilled and experienced individuals. Please take the time to study up on your particular state's benefits and the distinction between Title 10 (Active Duty) and Title 32 (Guard). This will help your transition go a whole lot smoother and understanding of your role quicker.

thisdudehenry

Mitechniq wrote: »

Welcome to the Guard,

You will find the Guard to be very family oriented with highly skilled and experienced individuals. Please take the time to study up on your particular state's benefits and the distinction between Title 10 (Active Duty) and Title 32 (Guard). This will help your transition go a whole lot smoother and understanding of your role quicker.

Will do, I've read I will not qualify for TriCare reserve because of the dual status and will have to find a suitable medical plan of my choice?

N2IT

When I think of the guard I think of the movie Rambo and the heavy set dood with the bazooka. Just kidding

Gratz!

Khaos1911

Congrats! I'm interested in joining the Guard myself.

thisdudehenry

Khaos1911 wrote: »

Congrats! I'm interested in joining the Guard myself.

It has great benefits look into it.

N2IT wrote: »

When I think of the guard I think of the movie Rambo and the heavy set dood with the bazooka. Just kidding

Gratz!

Hah , thanks I plan to stay fit though. I really do want a beard... but with this position I believe is uniform full time.

Mitechniq

Dual Status Technicians

They wear their respective military branch's uniform during the week
They drill and do Annual Tour (AT) with their unit (pay is paid separately on military status)
They are provided 15 days of military leave to do AT or any other military orders ( That's 2 pay checks for 15 days a year)
They are enrolled in 2 distinct retirement programs (FERS and their Military Guard Retirement)
They can 'buyback' military years on Active Duty for federal time, this could potentially increase your leave per paycheck and seniority
They are on a cost-share Medical Program but switched over to Tricare Prime (free) during military status

There is several other benefits but these are the ones that stick out the most..

thisdudehenry

Mitechniq wrote: »

Dual Status Technicians
They wear their respective military branch's uniform during the week

They drill and do Annual Tour (AT) with their unit (pay is paid separately on military status)

They are provided 15 days of military leave to do AT or any other military orders ( That's 2 pay checks for 15 days a year)

They are enrolled in 2 distinct retirement programs (FERS and their Military Guard Retirement)

They can 'buyback' military years on Active Duty for federal time, this could potentially increase your leave per paycheck and seniority

They are on a cost-share Medical Program but switched over to Tricare Prime (free) during military status

There is several other benefits but these are the ones that stick out the most..

2 paychecks for AT, am I understanding it correctly ? Active duty pay while on title 10 and regular gs pay ? Same if I go tdy Or something ?

SteveLord

Khaos1911 wrote: »

Congrats! I'm interested in joining the Guard myself.

Note: The full time gigs are few and EXTREMELY competitive. You also don't walk into one as a fresh private either.

OP - Be open minded about the Guard's "family oriented" environment. It is typically a lot more relaxed than big Army, but it doesn't make the Guard any less effective. The relationships between enlisted, NCOs and COs and not leaping to parade rest or snapping to attention every 2 minutes takes some getting use to.

Mitechniq

thisdudehenry wrote: »

2 paychecks for AT, am I understanding it correctly ? Active duty pay while on title 10 and regular gs pay ? Same if I go tdy Or something ?

It is a little more complicated than I previously alluded to but if your interested in finding further information. The regulation is under 5 U.S.C. 6323. I really only touched on subset (a), there is 3 other subsets that produce other slightly different benefits.

And Steveloard is absolutely correct, as an officer it threw me back when my Colonel would call me by my first name during official meetings.

Khaos1911

I'm sure, Stevelord. I have a a pretty good career that I wouldn't want to leave behind, so (as two of my best friends who are in the guard say) I'm interested in being a "weekend" warrior. I hate that term.

Truthfully, I've just always been interested in serving my country and the military in general.

BlackBeret

thisdudehenry wrote: »

Will do, I've read I will not qualify for TriCare reserve because of the dual status and will have to find a suitable medical plan of my choice?

Correct, when you qualify for both TRS and FHEB you're disqualified for TRS. You can go with FHEB or a private option. I personally find it to be BS, but most of the technicians I know just deal with it.