Military Spouse Network
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According to the Department of Labor, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 was enacted to help “balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families.” Anyone who has attempted to juggle the demands of being a parent or spouse with being an employee knows how difficult this task can be.
The additional stress of being a parent or spouse in the military community can make finding and keeping a job even harder. For this reason, the military community has been a primary focus for FMLA legislation over the past 20 years. Recent changes to FMLA specifically address issues faced by the military community.
Sen. Patty Murray proposed a bill on June 19, which would expand fertility coverage for veterans and their spouses.
UPDATE: The bill referenced in this article passed the Senate on Wednesday, Dec. 12, but is not likely to pass as the House has no plans to contest the bill by the end of 2012.
The U.S. Senate is proposing a bill that would expand fertility coverage for military veterans, as well as their spouses and surrogates.
Currently, the Department of Veterans Affairs does not pay for in vitro fertilization (IVF), a process where fertilization of an egg occurs outside of the body. But for many veterans who are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with critical injuries, IVF might be the only means by which they are able to start a family.
Service members moving overseas have the option to apply for a command sponsorship, which will allow dependents to travel and live with the military spouse on base in a foreign country fully funded by the government.
Although the most notable aspect of command sponsorship is getting to move, there are a number of benefits to being a command-sponsored dependent you might not be aware of. Keep in mind that most of the general information available on the web is for the Army specifically and other branches may have slightly different perks. See More
Part of military life is travel. Service members accept the possibility of deployment abroad, and they even expect it to some degree. What may not come to mind is falling in love with somebody who isn’t a naturalized U.S. citizen.
Although it may not be expected, service members do establish romantic relationships with significant others overseas or with permanent residents who are already residing in the United States. Unfortunately marrying a service member does not simplify the application process for naturalization, it just makes the process a little different. However, that should not deter military members’ spouses from pursuing U.S. naturalization if they want.
Here’s a quick overview of a few things required of those who want to naturalize: See More
When soldiers receive their deployment orders, they know they will have to step up and perform any challenge they encounter. If military spouses get their power of attorney papers, they do the same on the home front. Emotional stress and interruptions in family structure are expected, but financial struggles during a deployment may come as more of a surprise and prove tough to handle.
And that’s where a unique piece of legislation can help: the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. See More
Congratulations on your nuptials and welcome to the military family!
As a military spouse we are a pretty elite club. I was very intimidated when I first became a military spouse, having very little previous experience with the military. The first thing I found out about the military is that it comes with a lot, and I mean a lot, of paperwork!
So how can you get started now that you are officially a military spouse? In order to keep track of it all, we put together a list of the most urgent items to tackle immediately after you are married! See More
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