Veterans Preference in NJ Civil Service

Who counts as a veteran

The statute defines a veteran as a soldier, sailor, marine, airman, nurse or army field clerk who served in the active military or naval service of the United States in one of the wars or conflicts it lists, and who was discharged or released under other than dishonorable conditions (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1, subsection b). The definition is a list. Service in uniform outside the listed periods and places does not meet it unless one of the other items does, such as a qualifying campaign or expedition medal.

Two kinds of time requirement appear. World War II, Korea and Vietnam require at least 90 days of active service that began on or before an end date. The statute's World War I item sets only the dates, while the rule applies the 90 days to it as well (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.1(b)1). The Lebanon crisis and every mission and operation since require at least 14 days, continuous or added together, in a stated place. For each conflict after World War I, anyone who received an actual service-incurred injury or disability is classed as a veteran whether or not they completed the 90 or 14 days (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1, subsection b).

The 90-day periods leave out time assigned to the Army Specialized Training Program or the Navy College Training Program as a continuation of a civilian course, and time as a cadet or midshipman at a service academy (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1, subsection b). Two more routes complete the definition. One covers people who voluntarily enlisted in an allied army or navy in World War I or World War II while United States citizens, were honorably discharged and did not renounce or lose citizenship. The other covers service in a campaign or expedition for which a medal has been authorized and recognized by the federal Veterans' Preference Act of 1944 for civil service preference, and which was awarded to the veteran.

The Commission's rule repeats the list and says outright that it is for informational purposes only (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.1(a)). It differs from the statute in places. It gives the Iraqi Freedom start date as March 19, 2003, where the statute leaves the date to the President or the Secretary of Defense (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.1(b)12). It also adds, as its own item, the surviving spouse of a person entitled to veterans preference who has not remarried (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.1(b)16).

What makes a disabled veteran

Under the statute, a disabled veteran is a veteran who is eligible to be compensated for a service-connected disability from war service by the United States Veterans Administration, or who receives or is entitled to receive equivalent compensation for a service-connected disability arising out of military or naval service as the chapter describes (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1, subsection a). The statute names no minimum rating.

The Commission's rule does. It gives disabled veterans preference to a person who receives or is entitled to receive, under Veterans Administration guidelines, compensation for a service-connected disability of 10 percent or more arising out of military or naval service as provided in the veteran definition (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.2(a)1). Both are stated here as written, and the Adjutant General makes the determination (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection a).

Two conditions come with the definition. The disability has to be documented as incurred in the line of duty, and the determination has to be made no later than eight days before the list issues (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1, subsection a). The difference between the two groups matters on open competitive lists, in the noncompetitive division and in layoff tie-breaks. A promotional list draws none (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2(a)).

Who decides your status, and when it has to happen

The Civil Service Commission does not decide whether you are a veteran. The Adjutant General of the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs is responsible for determining whether a person meets the statutory criteria and for adjudicating an appeal from anyone who disputes that determination. The Adjutant General's determination is binding on the Commission (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection a; N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.1(a)).

Timing matters. A determination applies only going forward, from the date of the initial determination or the date of a determination on appeal (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection a; N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.3(a)). For an eligible list, preference counts only if you received the determination no later than eight days before the list's issuance date (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.3(b)). The statute builds the same eight days into both definitions (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1). A determination made fewer than eight days before a list issues, or after it, does not count on that list.

The noncompetitive division runs on a different clock. For initial employment in that division, and for promotion from the noncompetitive division into the competitive division, preference takes effect on the date of the Adjutant General's determination (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.3(c)).

If you have not yet been issued a DD-214, you may submit an official certification or verification of military service statement or letter instead, giving your date of entry, estimated date of discharge or release, the character of the discharge and anything else the Adjutant General requires. You then have to send the DD-214 within 30 days of receiving it. If you do not, the determination is revoked (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection b).

Disputes can arise in two places. An appeal of the status determination itself goes to the Adjutant General (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection a). Separately, the Commission's examination appeal rules list denial of veterans preference for a particular examination as an appealable examination matter (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-6.3(a)3iii). Those appeals are filed within 20 days of notice of the action, and the appellant carries the burden of proof (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-6.6(a)1, 4A:4-6.3(b)).

1. Gather proof of service. A DD-214, or if one has not been issued, an official certification or verification of military service letter in the form the Adjutant General specifies (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection b).
2. Submit to the Adjutant General. The Adjutant General of the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs decides whether you meet the veteran or disabled veteran criteria (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection a).
3. Get the determination before the list issues. It must be made no later than eight days before the eligible list's issuance date to count on that list, and it applies only going forward (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.3(a), (b)).
4. Send the DD-214 if you used a substitute. Within 30 days of receiving it, or the determination is revoked (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection b).
5. Dispute it in the right place. Appeals from the status determination go to the Adjutant General; a denial of preference on a particular examination is an examination appeal to the Commission, filed within 20 days (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-1.1, subsection a; N.J.A.C. 4A:4-6.3(a)3iii, 4A:4-6.6(a)1).

Open competitive lists: the order is absolute

An open competitive list is the list for getting into a title from outside. The names of disabled veterans who pass go at the top, in the order of their final scores. Veterans who pass come immediately after them, in score order. Non-veterans follow in score order (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-4, 11A:5-5; N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.1(a)). Where an announcement covers more than one local jurisdiction, the list is split into residency sub-lists first and the same three-group order applies inside each one (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-3.2(a)).

Your score decides your place within your group and nothing else. On the same list or sub-list, a non-veteran with the highest score still ranks below the lowest-scoring veteran who passed (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-3.2(a)). People with the same score and the same veterans status share a rank, and the tie is not broken (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.1(b)). The Commission's rule carries a ranked example that shows the top scorer finishing third, which the article on the ranking reproduces.

The preference does not reach provisional appointments. An appointing authority making a provisional appointment from an incomplete list is not required to give preference to disabled veterans or veterans (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.1(d)). A provisional appointment is allowed only where there is no complete list and no one remaining on an incomplete list will take a provisional appointment (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-1.5(a)1).

Certification and appointment from an open competitive list

The rule of three normally lets an appointing authority choose any of the top three interested eligibles on a certification (N.J.S.A. 11A:4-8). Veterans preference narrows that choice. Whenever a disabled veteran or veteran is certified from an open competitive list, the appointing authority must appoint the disabled veteran or veteran in the order of ranking (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-6). The disposition rule states it the same way: disabled veterans and then veterans are appointed in their order of ranking from an open competitive list (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.8(a)3i).

In practice, while a veteran heads the certification, the next appointment goes to a veteran at the top rank; where veterans are tied, the appointing authority may choose among them (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.1(b), (c)). The rule of three comes back into play once the certification reaches the non-veterans (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.1(c)). How an appointing authority reports its choice, and what happens when it does not, is the subject of the certification disposition guide.

A separate rule limits how often a passed-over non-veteran comes back. A non-veteran certified to the same appointing authority from an open competitive list three times, and passed over for a lower-ranked eligible each time, has their name withheld from future certifications to that employer. If the appointing authority asks to recertify that person, only that eligible and any higher or equal ranking veteran eligible are certified (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.4(a)).

If you are on military leave when your name comes up, you continue to be certified, and the appointing authority may treat you as immediately available even though reporting is delayed. After you return and complete the working test period, you hold the same rights as if you had served continuously from the original appointment date (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6). The working test period guide explains that period.

Promotional lists work differently

Promotions run on a weaker rule. The statute says the open competitive sections do not apply to promotions at all, with one exception: whenever a veteran ranks highest on a promotional certification, a non-veteran shall not be appointed unless the appointing authority shows cause before the Commission why the veteran should not receive the promotion (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-7).

The rule fills in the details (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2):

• Disabled veterans and veterans are treated alike. Both are called veterans for promotional purposes (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2(a)).
• The list follows score order regardless of veteran status. Veterans are listed first only within a tied rank (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2(b), 4A:4-3.2(b)1).
• For a single vacancy from a certification headed by a veteran, any veteran among the top three interested eligibles may be appointed. A non-veteran may not be, unless the appointing authority shows cause why the veterans should be removed from the list under the removal rule (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2(c), 4A:4-4.7).
• If a non-veteran heads the certification, any reachable eligible may be appointed under the rule of three (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2(d)).
• With several vacancies, the test repeats after each appointment: if a veteran heads the certification at that point, a veteran must be appointed to the next vacancy (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.2(e)).

The disposition rule puts the same limit in one line: if the eligible who ranks first on a promotional list is a veteran, a non-veteran may not be appointed (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.8(a)3ii). All eligibles on a promotional list are certified in order of rank for as long as they remain on it (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.4(b)), and the Commission may waive a promotional examination for a qualified permanent employee only where, among other conditions, veterans preference rights are not a factor (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.7(a)4).

One statute reaches police and fire promotions in a city of the first class. A veteran in the police or fire department there may sit for promotion to a superior rank, and on passing is entitled to appointment, after holding the current rank for one year rather than two (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-14).

Jobs with no examination

Titles in the noncompetitive division are filled without an examination, so there is no ranked list to reorder. Preference applies anyway. From among those eligible for appointment in the noncompetitive division, preference goes to a qualified veteran, and before choosing a non-veteran over a qualified veteran the appointing authority has to show cause before the Civil Service Commission why the veteran should not be appointed. A disabled veteran has preference over all others (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-8).

The rules say the same thing more briefly. In noncompetitive appointments preference is given among qualified applicants to disabled veterans, then veterans (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-2.3), and the career service appointment rule repeats that order (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-1.1(b)). The preference operates among qualified applicants, the people who meet the title's requirements. As noted above, preference in this division takes effect on the date of the Adjutant General's determination rather than eight days before a list (N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.3(c)). The competitive and noncompetitive explainer covers which titles sit in which division.

Layoffs: preference breaks ties in seniority

In a layoff, the statute gives preference first to a disabled veteran and then to a veteran, but only where the disabled veteran or veteran has seniority in title equal to that of a non-veteran also affected by the layoff (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-9). A veteran with less seniority than a non-veteran gets no help from this section.

The Commission's layoff rule places veteran status first among its tie-breakers. When two or more employees have equal seniority, a disabled veteran has priority over a veteran and a veteran has priority over a non-veteran, ahead of performance ratings and every service-based factor (N.J.A.C. 4A:8-2.4(h)1). Seniority under that rule is generally continuous permanent service in the jurisdiction regardless of title, and for police and fire titles it is service in the current title and titles with lateral or demotional rights to it (N.J.A.C. 4A:8-2.4(a), (b)). The statute speaks of seniority in title. Both are stated here as written. The layoff guide explains how seniority is counted and how displacement works.

Military leave does not cost seniority. Leaves without pay for military purposes are not deducted from seniority calculations (N.J.A.C. 4A:8-2.4(d)3), and during military leave an employee on a military leave granted under that section keeps accruing seniority and, if applicable, salary increments (N.J.A.C. 4A:6-1.11(f)).

A hearing before a veteran is dismissed

Section 11A:5-10 adds a procedural step. Before any department head dismisses a veteran, as provided in N.J.S.A. 11A:5-9, the department head has to show cause before the Civil Service Commission why the veteran should not be retained, and the veteran may attend. The Commission is the sole judge of the facts constituting the qualification (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-10).

The section ties itself to 11A:5-9, the layoff preference, by its own words. The burden it places is on the department head, who must show cause for not retaining the veteran. None of the Title 4A sections that mention veterans restates this hearing, so this page cites the statute alone. For removal for cause, the discipline and removal guide sets out the notice, hearing and appeal that apply to every permanent employee.

Spouses, surviving spouses and parents

Preference can pass to family members in four situations, and the statute and rule describe the same four (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-2, 11A:5-3; N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.2(a)2 to 4).

• The spouse of a living disabled veteran may receive disabled veterans preference, but only if the veteran is not employed by the State or a political subdivision operating under Title 11A and, if able to, officially waives any right to preference for as long as the spouse is employed (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-2).
• The surviving spouse of a disabled veteran or a veteran receives the same preference the veteran would have had if still living. It ends on remarriage (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-2; N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.1(b)16, 4A:5-1.2(a)3).
• A parent and a spouse of a veteran who died while in service, and who would have qualified as a veteran, are each entitled to disabled veterans preference (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-3).
• Where both a parent and a spouse survive, one using the preference suspends the other's right for as long as the first remains employed by the State or a political subdivision operating under Title 11A (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-3; N.J.A.C. 4A:5-1.2(a)4).

The waiver condition is easy to miss. A disabled veteran who still works for a civil service employer cannot pass the preference to a spouse, and one who waives gives up their own preference for the length of the spouse's employment (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-2).

A service disability cannot count against you

A veteran with a physical disability caused by wounds or injuries received in the line of duty during listed war service shall not be discriminated against in an examination, classification or appointment because of the disability. The one exception is where, in the Commission's opinion, the disability would keep the veteran from properly performing the duties of the position applied for (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-11).

The section covers physical disability from wounds or injuries received in the line of duty during war service. It applies at three stages, the examination, the classification and the appointment, and the judgment that a disability is disqualifying for the job belongs to the Commission (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-11).

Guard and reserve members called up while on a list

Being called to active duty can mean a list expires while you are away. A member of the New Jersey National Guard or a reserve component of the United States Armed Forces who is on an open competitive list, is called to active federal duty before it expires and does not return until after it expires may apply, within 12 months of expiration, to be placed on an active open competitive list for the same title and jurisdiction (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-6.1, subsection a; N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6A(a), (b)).

Generally you keep the final average from the expired list, unless a make-up examination or one of the unassembled-examination rules applies (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6A(c)1, (d), (e)). Your name is added for prospective appointment only, immediately after the disabled veterans and veterans on the active list. If you receive veterans or disabled veterans status before the active list is promulgated, you are placed among them on the strength of your retained average (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6A(c)). The statute gives a returning member veteran status for this purpose where a list is generated after the status is granted (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-6.1, subsection b).

To apply you file an examination application, meet the active list's eligibility requirements even though the closing date has passed, and submit proof of active federal duty, for which a completed DD-214 is sufficient. No application fee is charged (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6A(a)1, (a)2). If the two lists came from different kinds of test, you take a make-up in the active list's test mode, and failing it bars another placement within one year of filing (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6A(d)). You may ask for placement on up to two consecutive lists, with the second only if it can happen within 12 months of filing (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-4.6A(f)). A municipal police candidate who met the maximum age at the original closing date is treated as meeting it on the later list (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-6.1, subsection c).

Fees, age limits and the highest decorations

Veterans pay less to apply. The statute sets a $25 fee for an open competitive or promotional examination application and a $15 fee for an application by a veteran, outside law enforcement officer and firefighter examinations, whose fees are set separately (N.J.S.A. 11A:4-1.1, subsections a and b; N.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.17(a)1). The $20 fee for filing an appeal with the Commission is waived for an appellant who has established veterans preference (N.J.A.C. 4A:2-1.8(e)1; N.J.S.A. 11A:4-1.1, subsection d).

Veterans above a maximum age requirement for an open competitive examination may recalculate their age for recording purposes under N.J.S.A. 38:23A-2, a statute outside Title 11A (N.J.A.C. 4A:4-2.3(b)2iii).

A small group bypasses the Commission's rules entirely. A person who served in the Army, Air Force, Navy or Marine Corps and was awarded the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Air Force Cross or the Navy Cross while a New Jersey resident, or who served in the Coast Guard and was awarded the Medal of Honor or the Navy Cross while a resident, shall be appointed or promoted without complying with the Commission's rules, at the appointing authority's discretion. Once appointed or promoted the person becomes subject to those rules, and the section is not limited to one appointment or promotion (N.J.S.A. 11A:5-12).

Other workplace rights guides

This guide is one of a set on the rules that govern working for a New Jersey civil service employer. Start at the workplace rights overview for how the different appeal routes fit together.

• Telework in State service

  The two-day limit, the thirteen eligibility criteria, how denials and revocations are decided, and the three ways to challenge one.

• Vacation, sick and family leave

  How much leave you earn, what happens to unused days, sick leave at retirement, family leave, and the State and local split.

• Discipline and removal

  Major and minor discipline, notice and hearing before a penalty, the 20-day appeal and what you recover if you win.

• Layoffs

  The 45-day notice, how seniority is counted, lateral and demotional rights, special reemployment lists and the two layoff appeals.

• Pay, steps and overtime

  How steps and anniversary dates work, pay on promotion, demotion and reclassification, overtime categories, comp time and holiday pay.

• The working test period

  How long the probation period lasts, the progress reports, what happens at the end, and the appeal if you are let go.

• Classification appeals

  Out-of-title work, asking for a position review, what reclassification does to pay and status, and the 20-day appeal.

• Certification and removal from a list

  What a certification holds, how the employer disposes of it, the grounds for removing a name, list expiration and revival, and the 20-day appeal.