For employers and individuals alike, understanding the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) is a key to hiring, employee relations, and understanding the rights of service members. USERRA provides key benefits for veterans and their families, protecting their employment rights when they are called into active duty service. This Act also protects the re-employment rights of members of the National Guard and Reserve forces when returning from active duty service.
USERRA governs all employers in the United States. Even those employers who are not covered by other laws, such as the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or state leaves-of-absence laws, must comply with USERRA. All employment policies and practices of all employers must be consistent with USERRA, which guards employment and re-employment rights of service members, providing them with job advancement, overtime pay, and other protections.
For employers, this means choosing applicants based on merit, rather than taking their military service, or lack thereof, into consideration when hiring. This helps military members have the opportunity to compete for competitive positions, and employers will be less likely to face potential lawsuits due to unfair hiring practices. Similarly, employers may not require a service member to agree to any kind of waiver or prior approval before a service member is allowed to leave the job in order to participate in military service.
In addition to protecting hiring and re-employment rights, USERRA also guarantees that an employee who has served in the military will be entitled to unpaid military leaves of absence. Service members are entitled to take unpaid leave without being subject to discipline by their employers. This includes utilizing any accrued vacation time or sick days associated with the leave.
Though employers often bear the burden of USERRA compliance, its enactment really brought about protections to service members and their families. USERRA has a long history of success, having been around since 1994, when Congress passed the law. This law ensures service members can start their new jobs without worry of job loss and be protected against discrimination due to their military service. Moreover, it helps keep employers in line if they try to circumvent USERRA’s rules.
USERRA in Action: Examples From the Modern Workplace
One example of USERRA in action happened in 2017 when a Fort Knox Army Veteran filed a lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Army failed to comply with the act by denying the veteran their right to employment. After serving in Afghanistan, the veteran desired to return to their job with the Army as a full-time employee. Instead, the Army shifted the veteran to part-time work without explanation. Consequently, the court found the Army had committed a violation of the USERRA and ordered them to end the practice.
In a more recent example, in 2020, California-based Takata Corporation, a supplier of automotive safety equipment, agreed to pay $1.9 million after two former U.S. Marine Reservists filed a USERRA lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that Takata had violated USERRA policies by failing to accommodate their military duties. Both company employees sought part-time work while serving in the Marine Reserve with no luck. The jury awarded the two Marine Reservists a combined total of $720,000, and Takata agreed to pay more than $1 million in damages.
From these examples, it’s clear that from hiring practices to extended military leave, USERRA provides service members with invaluable protections. As such, it’s extremely important for employers to familiarize themselves with the law and understand their responsibilities under it.