The Foreign Service Journal, November 2005

starting a job search in the U.S. can be just as daunting as it is overseas. Low wages and low government grade lev- els, a spotty employment record and extensive volunteer activities do not always meet local employers’ require- ments. FLO’s monthly Job Seekers Network Group meets to provide support, networking opportunities, resources and information to those involved in a job search. Former Department of State fam- ily-member employees now have the right to “buy back” retirement credit for time employed under a Part-time, Intermittent or Temporary (PIT) appointment during the period from 1989 until 1998. Family members had been excluded from retirement coverage when the Federal Employees Retirement System law took effect in the beginning of 1989. A new law was passed in September 2002 to provide retroactive retire- ment benefits for this group, and after considerable delay, implementation regulations were issued in September 2005. The State Department’s Office of Retirement is processing these cases, in cooperation with the Office of Personnel Management. FLO will continue to advocate for and create programs to ease the chal- lenge of finding employment oppor- tunities and maintaining dual careers for Foreign Service family members. For more information on FLO’s employment programs, please visit FLO’s Intranet site at http://hrweb. hr.state.gov/flo/employment/employ ment.html or its Internet site at http://www.state.gov/m/dghr/flo/c195 9.htm. n Donna Ayerst is publications coordi- nator for the Family Liaison Office. 24 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 5 F S K N O W - H O W u Former Department of State family-member employees have the right to “buy back” retirement credit for time employed from 1989 until 1998.