Employee Benefits

A DMH employee's total compensation package is more than just a paycheck. 

Explore each section below for information on benefits available to DMH team members.

Pay Periods

Pay Periods are currently set up on a two-week lag system. This means, State of Missouri employees are paid for a two-week pay cycle, two weeks after the conclusion of the pay cycle.  There are two pay cycles per month. The first pay cycle goes from the first through the 15th of each month.  The second pay cycle goes from the 16th through the end of the month.

Payday for the first pay cycle (the 1st through the 15th) is on the last working day of the month.  Payday for the second pay cycle (the 16th through the 30th/31st) is on the 15th of the following month.

If the 15th falls on a Saturday, employees will receive pay on the preceding Friday.  If the 15th falls on a Sunday, employees will receive pay on the following Monday.

Annual Leave/Sick Leave

Semi-monthly Annual/Sick Leave Accrual for Team Members in full-time positions of a continuing or permanent nature in pay status for 40 hours or more the employee earns 5 hours sick leave, regardless of length of service. There is no limit on the amount of sick leave that an employee may accumulate.  In addition, employees will get one month of credited service for each block of 168 hours of unused sick leave they have at retirement.

The amount of annual leave earned during a pay period depends on the employee’s length of service.  Any excess annual leave hours over the maximum accrual on the October 31 will be lost.

Years of ServiceHours Earned/Pay CycleMax Hours
Less than 105240
10 - 146288
15 +7336


Learn about other leave types (including Parental Leave for up to 6 weeks).

Paid Holidays

As an employer, the State of Missouri observes 13 paid holidays per year.

A legal holiday is a day of cultural importance that is officially recognized by the government. The federal government authorizes a number of legal holidays and closes most non-essential federal offices - including the U.S. Postal Service - while providing paid holidays to its employees.

Many states also authorize additional legal holidays, often to commemorate a state anniversary or something of cultural relevance to the state. Missouri's legal holidays are mostly limited to those already designated by the federal government, such as Thanksgiving and Veteran's Day. One unique holiday recognized in Missouri is Truman Day (honoring Missouri native and former U.S President Harry S. Truman).

Paid In-Service Training

The Department of Mental Health encourages employees to increase their knowledge, experience, and skills through available training, such as:

Training promotes employee empowerment and competency; helping you grow professionally as well as helping the department in serving, empowering, and supporting Missourians to live their best lives.

Direct Deposit

Team Member payroll is posted via Direct Deposit to the bank, savings institution, or credit union of their choice.

As of January 1, 2008, direct deposit is mandatory for all permanent State of Missouri executive agency employees.  All temporary executive agency employees are required to use direct deposit if their employment duration is anticipated to be greater than three months.

Employee Self-Service (ESS) Portal

Employee Self-Service portal is a secure web-based employee self-service portal that includes:

  • Paycheck details
  • Leave balance summary information
  • W2 information
  • Training history
  • Links to State of Missouri Vendor Payment Services
  • Links to Benefits Providers
  • Printable blank W-4 forms for federal or state
  • Ability to submit name and address changes to your HR/Payroll office
  • Employee announcements
Missouri State Employees' Retirement System (MOSERS)

Missouri State Employees’ Retirement System (MOSERS) administers retirement, life insurance, and long-term disability benefits.

Retirement Plan
Members hired after January 1, 2011, are required to contribute 4% of their pay to the retirement system.  Each employee is vested after five years of employment.  The state makes monthly contributions which cover the full cost of the plan. The amount of each employee’s benefit is determined by age at retirement, months of creditable service, salary and payment schedule.

DMH wants to empower team members throughout the course of their employment life-cycle by promoting a more complete understanding of retirement benefits, regardless of position, age, education level, or tenure with the State of Missouri.

Basic Life Insurance
Basic Life Insurance in the amount of one times the employee’s annual salary at no cost. Optional Life (for employee, spouse, and dependent) is available for purchase with premiums paid through payroll deduction.  Employees may purchase additional life insurance in $10,000 increments, not to exceed the lesser of six times their annual salary. Employees may also purchase up to $100,000 coverage on eligible spouses and $10,000 on each eligible child.

Long-term Disability
Long-term Disability is a state financed benefit that is 60% of the employee’s monthly salary less taxes.

Missouri Consolidated Health Care Plan (MCHCP)

Missouri Consolidated Health Care Plan (MCHCP) provides medical, dental, and vision benefits for employees and their families, including Rx Saving Solutions (RxSS) which proactively alerts members when lower-cost prescription drug options become available.

Support Resources

  • Strive Employee Life & Family (SELF), offered through ComPsych, can help reduce stress, improve health and enhance life balance. Plus, the program is offered at no cost. Employees may participate by calling ComPsych at 800-808-2261 or by registering with ComPsych online. SELF entitles an employee and any member of the employee’s household up to six free visits per episode.
     
  • Strive for Wellness is designed to encourage members to get and stay healthy. The program offers lower medical premiums for participation in the health incentive programs.
     
  • Sydney Health helps you stay connected to your health plan and benefits right through your smartphone by downloading the Sydney Health app (available through the App Store or Google Play). Sydney Health includes:
     
    • SmartShopper® Program helps members save money (or even get cash back!) when they need certain covered medical services by shopping prices, helping members better understand their health care options, and scheduling their appointments.
       
    • MCHCP is adding coverage for Fertility Support services! Members who qualify will have access to WINFertility — a fertility support program through Anthem.
       
    • Virtual Care (available at no cost) through Sydney Health, includes Virtual Primary Care, Mercy Express Care, Hinge Health, and the Lark Diabetes Prevention Program.
Cafeteria Plan

The Cafeteria Plan provides tax-free purchase on employee’s health, dental, and vision premiums, medical and dental fees, prescription drugs, dependent care assistance, and commuter benefits. All new employees are automatically enrolled in the Premium Only Participation plan and may opt out during the first thirty days of employment.

Participation in the Cafeteria Plan lowers the gross taxable income reported to the Internal Revenue Service by the Department of Revenue. There is a semi-monthly fee of $0.14, $1.20 or $1.70 per participant in the plan.

Deferred Compensation Plan

The Deferred Compensation Plan is available as a pre-taxed deduction and eligibility begins with employment. All new employees hired for the first time to a state position after July 1, 2012, will be automatically enrolled in the deferred compensation plan for 1% of their salary. Employees may opt out of this enrollment during the first thirty days of employment and will be refunded any money already deducted. Employees may change or cancel their enrollment any time after thirty days.

Employees may defer a portion of their salary before state/federal income taxes are withheld. If you are 50 years of age or under, you may contribute up to $15,500 annually.  If you are over 50 years of age, you may contribute an additional $5,000 up to $20,500 annually. Each employee designates where funds are invested by selection from various options, including money market funds, fixed rate funds, growth funds, etc.

Missouri Saving for Tuition (MOST) 529 College Savings Program

The Missouri Saving for Tuition (MOST) 529 College Savings Program is an investment account you can use for education savings. Earnings grow federally tax-deferred, and qualified withdrawals are tax-free. 529 accounts can be used to pay for 2- and 4-year colleges, post-secondary trade and vocational schools, postgraduate programs, and K-12 public, private, and religious institutions (tuition only).

MOMENTS Mentoring Program

The Missouri state workforce is filled with capable, driven, and knowledgeable team members, all of whom have something to offer others.

MOMENTS is a statewide initiative aimed at connecting team members to learn from each other, to strengthen our teams, and to deepen our sense of belonging through mentoring relationships.  By connecting ambitious mentees with proven leaders, we can shape the next generation of leadership within the State, setting ourselves and our customers up for excellence for years to come.

Workers' Compensation

Workers’ Compensation is a benefit payable to an all employees, full or part-time, without regard to liability in the case of injury, disability, or death as a result of occupational hazards.  A covered injury is an injury or illness arising out of and in the course of employment.  In addition, the injury must clearly be work related and cannot be an “ordinary disease of life," unless it follows an incident of an occupational disease.

The State of Missouri administers its workers' compensation program through the Office of Administration, Central Accident Reporting Office (CARO).

Benefits include:

  • Medical care (provider selected by CARO) to cure and relieve the effects of the injury, including doctor's fees, hospital costs, lab tests, X-rays, pharmacy charges, prosthetic devices, etc.
     
  • Payments based on lost wages. These payments are for "temporary disability," or inability to work, authorized by a physician. Payments may also be made if there is a permanent disability-for example, the loss of an eye or the amputation of a finger or limb.
     
  • Rehabilitation services. Often this is physical therapy, but should an injury keep you from returning to your usual job, you may qualify for retraining and vocational rehabilitation.

Learn more about Workers' Compensation.

Additional Benefits

Other Team Member benefits include:

State of Missouri Assistance Programs