I’ve been noodling around on web-discussions about WKRP, and was reminded of the episode where Venus admits to Andy that he deserted from the military close to the end of his tour in Vietnam. Venus saw a buddy commit suicide by jumping out of a helicopter. Venus snapped and walked out himself, with less than a month before his discharge.
He’s had it hanging over him ever since, and has been using false names, generally trying to keep a low profile. Andy persuades him that he has to clear it up, not let it hang over him for his whole life.
Venus turns himself in, and surprisingly, the strait-laced ex-Marine, Mr Carlson, speaks up for him to the military hearing officer.
In light of the circumstances and Venus’s clean record since the desertion, the hearing officer gives him a general discharge.
So what’s the effect of a general discharge, compared to an honourable discharge? Does it affect Venus’s military pension? Military health-care? Does it affect his future job prospects?
And bonus question: how likely is it that a hearing officer would give a general discharge in these circa?
A service member loses the following benefits due to a General Discharge versus an Honorable Discharge:
GI Bill
Civil Service Employment Preference
Credit for Retirement Benefits
Naturalization Benefits
As far as how that affects future job prospects, it’s neutral. He will no longer have the veterans preference in hiring from other government and civil service positions, but it won’t be a disqualifier like a Dishonorable Discharge would be. So he would be on even footing with someone with no military service. If he had a service-related injury, he would retain his entitlements to medical care for that injury.
An honorable discharge means you did fine and get full benefits, a general discharge means you didn’t do great but didn’t do anything really wrong. Like Bear Nenno said you can’t get preference as a veteran for Federal jobs, probably don’t count as a veteran for other jobs, can’t get GI Bill, Naturalization, or retirement benefits. While you don’t get any kind of veteran preference for jobs, you aren’t disqualified the way you are with a dishonorable discharge, which is basically treated as a felony conviction.
As to the specific-specific of the employment in the fiction, what’s the difference as to his discharge–is it a “disqualification” at (IRL) such a position?
If he wanted to be a cop, or whatever, I understand the “equivalent to a felony.”