A policy adopted at Thursday’s board meeting will let SIU employees called to active duty with the peacekeeping mission rest a little less worried about their lives at home while they’re helping with the peacekeeping effort.

The policy calls for employees that work at least half-time to remain on the SIU payroll for up to one year after they go to military duty.

We believe this action is a good idea. These people are making a sacrifice for our country. The least we should do, as a University, is make sure they do not suffer as a result of their service.

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These employees won’t receive full pay from the University. Instead, they will receive the difference between their military pay and their wages at SIU. Insurance and other benefits also will be kept intact while the employees are away.

Gov. Jim Edgar along with the board and SIU President Ted Sanders should be lauded for the policy.

Edgar recently signed an executive order, similar to SIU’s new policy, which grants state employees who are called to duty for the peace-keeping mission. Edgar then asked the University to consider implementing a plan that would do the same thing for its employees.

Although there are only three employees at SIUC that have been called to help with peacekeeping efforts, the policy is still significant.

University Relations officials said they were not clear about one facet of the policy, however. Will the people serving in the peacekeeping mission be guaranteed the same position when they return from their service? is a question that remains unanswered.

We think if the policy does not insure that the employees on leave will have the same job waiting for them when they return that it should be modified to do so.

Admittedly, such a modification may not be needed for practical purposes. Only three SIU employees, all from the Carbondale campus, have been called to duty. Two of these are faculty members. The other is a physical plant employee. It is likely that these employees will pick up where they left off upon their return. It would be preferable to see this officially guaranteed though.

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Despite the lack of this guarantee, the action is still commendable.

During Operation Desert Storm, SIU adopted a comparable plan to help employees from having financial problems when they were called to active duty.

We believe that action, coupled with the board’s decision Thursday, shows a pattern of commitment on the University’s part to helping people who serve all of us.