Yesterday, a federal appellate court issued a precedential opinion clarifying when employers must pay employees and provide certain benefits while they take short-term military leave under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (“USERRA”). USERRA is a federal law that protects servicemembers’ and veterans’ civilian employment rights.…
I want to tell you about an Army reservist whose employer investigated him for taking fraudulent leave. That investigation spawned a grand jury indictment for theft. The employee was booked, detained in jail, suspended from his job, and eventually fired. Yada, yada, yada, a federal jury awarded the employee $1,500,000.…
Well, if you count The Employer Handbook itself, which email gods magically deliver to blog subscriber email inboxes every weekday following weeknights where I haven’t had too many blog-inhibiting adult beverages, I’ve got three freebies today. To remedy that, you must promise to pay me $100 if you keep reading…
Image Credit: Robert Couse-Baker on Pxhere.com I’m willing to bet that, somewhere in your handbook, most of you have a section on military or USERRA leave. USERRA protects service members’ reemployment rights when returning from a service period in the uniformed services, including those called up from the reserves or…
Photo By: Senior Airman Donald Hudson (https://www.defense.gov/observe/photo-gallery/igphoto/2001841357/) Hey, I know a good management-side employment lawyer! Just sayin’. What is USERRA? The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) is a federal law that protects servicemembers’ and veterans’ civilian employment rights. USERRA guarantees reemployment rights for employees who…
Image by Shonda Ranson from Pixabay Late last week, the EEOC revised and released three publications that discuss how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) apply to veteran employees and those who employ them. The revised publications are: EEOC Efforts…
Photo By: Senior Airman Donald Hudson (https://www.defense.gov/observe/photo-gallery/igphoto/2001841357/) A former federal judge once told me that of all the forms of employment discrimination that juries hate, bias against military personnel tops the list. What is USERRA? The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) is a federal law…
Image Credit: Photofunia.com (http://photofunia.com/results/5b8f35e6089f7a90518b4572) Oh, I’ve got your hookup today. As I was getting caught up on last week’s email, I came across a News Release from the U.S. Department of Labor. In this Release, the DOL touted “cross-agency effort complements the Department’s enforcement activities by strengthening and innovating compliance assistance…
I had every intention of watching the President address the Nation last night. I really did. But, then I got sucked into the Director’s Cut of The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan’s Island, the one where the Washington Generals show up first and replace all the confetti with lice. Then poor Lovie…
To improve the reinstatement rights of returning war veterans, and to add more enforcement teeth to the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), Pennsylvania Senator Robert Casey reintroduced the Servicemembers Access to Justice Act (SAJA) last week. Details on SAJA and what it could mean for employers follow…