How to Request Kroger Educational Leave of Absence: Pay and Benefits

The Kroger educational leave of absence lets eligible associates take up to six months of unpaid time off to attend an accredited school full time while keeping their position and seniority with the company.¹ You can request it as many times as you need, as long as you come back to work during breaks between terms. It is one piece of Kroger’s Feed Your Future education program, which also includes tuition reimbursement of up to $3,500 per year.²

Who Qualifies

Full-time and part-time associates become eligible after six months of continuous employment. The studies you plan to pursue must be full time at an accredited college or university, a technical or vocational school, or a specialized training program.¹ Part-time course loads and non-accredited workshops or seminars do not qualify. Associates should also be in good standing, with no active disciplinary actions on file when the request is submitted.

How Long the Leave Lasts and Whether You Get Paid

Each leave runs up to six months.¹ That window usually covers one semester, and it can stretch across summer sessions or a quarter-based calendar. If your program runs longer than six months, you return to work during the break between terms and then request another leave for the next period. There is no cap on how many times you can do this.

The leave is unpaid. No hourly wages, no salary. Because no paycheck is being processed, any deductions that normally come out of your pay — health insurance premiums, retirement contributions, union dues — stop flowing automatically. Sort out how each of those pieces will be handled before your last working day.

How to Request the Leave

Gather Your Enrollment Proof

The strongest document is an official enrollment verification letter from your school’s registrar showing your name, the institution, your full-time status, and the start and end dates of the term. A printed class schedule with the same information can also work. The point is to show that you meet the full-time, accredited-institution requirement.

Talk to Your Manager, Then File the Form

Start with your direct supervisor or store manager. That conversation lets the team plan for your absence and begin scheduling around it. From there, complete a Leave of Absence Request form and mark the reason as “Educational” so it is coded correctly in the HR system. Enter start and end dates that line up with your academic term.

Kroger has historically used the MyLife at Kroger portal for benefits and leave management, though some functions have been moving to the Feed platform. Which portal you use may depend on your division and bargaining unit, so ask your store’s HR representative to confirm the right system and walk you through the digital submission if needed. Once submitted, the request goes to regional HR for approval. Submit at least three to four weeks before your first day of classes to leave room for processing and any follow-up questions.

Approval usually arrives by email or as a notification in the HR portal. Confirm your last working day with your supervisor and hand off any ongoing tasks cleanly before you leave.

What Happens to Your Benefits

Health Insurance

When your pay stops, Kroger’s employer share of your health insurance premium typically ends too. To keep the same group plan, you can elect COBRA continuation coverage and pay the full premium yourself, up to 102 percent of the plan’s total cost including a 2 percent administrative fee.³ That figure is often much higher than what came out of your paycheck, because Kroger’s contribution is no longer offsetting the bill. A COBRA election notice should arrive after your coverage ends.⁴ If the premium is out of reach, compare marketplace plans or coverage through a spouse’s employer for the months you will be out.

HSA and 401(k) Contributions

If you contribute to a Health Savings Account through an HSA-eligible high-deductible health plan, your ability to keep contributing depends on whether you maintain that qualifying coverage. Employer HSA contributions stop during unpaid leave because they run through payroll. The same is true for your 401(k): neither you nor Kroger will be contributing while you are away. If your vesting schedule for employer contributions runs on years of service, an extended leave could push back the next vesting milestone depending on how your plan counts service hours. Check your 401(k) summary plan description or call the plan administrator before you go.

Your Position and Seniority

The policy protects your seniority. Kroger has described the benefit as letting associates “take time off work to focus on approved studies, while maintaining a role with the family of companies and their seniority.”² You are guaranteed a comparable position when you come back, though the exact shift or department may change based on store staffing. If your job is covered by a UFCW or other collective bargaining agreement, the seniority terms in your contract control what happens during the leave.

Returning to Work Between Terms

Kroger expects you to return to work during semester and short-term breaks between terms.¹ That is part of the program’s structure, not a formality. Working during breaks keeps your employment relationship active and lets you request another leave for the next semester without starting over.

When you return, your seniority picks up where it left off, and you are placed in a comparable role based on current operational needs. Your schedule or department may shift, but pay rate and seniority-based benefits should reflect your pre-leave standing. If anything looks off on your first paycheck back, raise it with your store’s HR office right away instead of waiting for it to correct itself.

If you decide not to return, whether because you transferred to a school far from any Kroger location or your career plans changed, resign formally rather than letting the leave lapse. Failing to return or communicate can be coded as a voluntary termination, which may affect your rehire eligibility later.

Can You Also Use Feed Your Future Tuition Reimbursement

Feed Your Future offers up to $3,500 per year and $21,000 over the course of your employment toward tuition, fees, and other education costs.² The benefit covers GED prep, professional certifications, and bachelor’s and graduate degrees.¹

Whether you can collect tuition reimbursement while on unpaid educational leave is not spelled out in publicly available materials. The leave and the tuition benefit are separate components of the same Feed Your Future program, and both share the six-month tenure requirement. Some tuition reimbursement programs, though, require the associate to be actively working while enrolled. Ask HR directly before assuming you can use both at the same time. The answer may also turn on the terms of your local bargaining agreement.

1
Employee Benefit News. Kroger Uses Tax Savings to Introduce Education Benefit
2
The Kroger Co. Kroger Announces Industry-Leading Commitment to Associate Education and Lifelong Learning
3
U.S. Department of Labor. Continuation of Health Coverage (COBRA)
4
U.S. Department of Labor. FAQs on COBRA Continuation Health Coverage for Workers