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Petrie & Stocking S.C. has
been dedicated to providing the
highest quality legal services since
1895. Our greatest strength is our
ability to provide timely, practical
and cost -effective solutions to
legal problems.
We
are pleased to introduce our firm
and its principal areas of practice,
which include: wills, living trusts,
estates, lifetime and estate planning
for the elderly and special needs
family members, personal injury
claims and litigation, business
and general civil litigation, business
and banking law, employment law,
real estate, creditors' rights and
bankruptcy, family law and alternative
dispute resolution. Each area of
practice is staffed with attorneys
whose experience and expertise may
be drawn upon to meet each clients'
particular needs. We seek to foster
a personal attorney-client relationship.
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EMPLOYMENT PROTECTION FOR EMPLOYEES IN THE MILITARY
by Thomas L. Frenn and Lydia J. Chartre
Employees who are also in the military have important
rights to job protection. The primary laws protecting
those employees when called to active service are the
Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act of 1940 (SSCRA) and
the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Act
(USERRA). This article will briefly describe the protections
under USERRA.
USERRA covers employees on qualified military service
which means service in uniformed services while on active
or inactive duty. The uniformed services include the Army,
Navy, Marine Corps., Air Force, Coast Guard, Public Health
Service Commission Corps and the reserve components of
those services, as well as the National Guard or Air
National Guard. Most private and government employers
are subject to the Act.
To be covered by USERRA, employers must:
A. Give notice to their employer of their impending
military service;
B. Receive an honorable or a general discharge from the
military; and
C. Promptly return to work.
The time frame in which employees must return to
work after discharge depends on the length of their
military service and can range from the first day after
completion of service, if it is less than 31 days, to 90
days after the completion service if military service has
lasted more than 6 months.
Assuming that employees have satisfied all of their
obligations, they have the following rights under USERRA:
1. Re-employment - your employer must offer you a job
when returning from military service. The job that you
are offered depends on how long you have been away.
2. Employee benefits - there are numerous protections for
the activated employee with respect to their
qualifications for benefit plans and other employment
laws, such as, the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Employers must also allow the continuation of health
benefits while in the active service similar to
continuation rights under COBRA.
3. Job Security - employees also have certain limited
protections from employment termination after they
have been re-hired after military service. USERRA
protects returning members from discharge without
cause for a period of time based upon the length of
your active military service and the protection may last
up to 1 year after re-employment. Employees are also
protected from employer discrimination based upon
military service.
There are several other facets of the law that apply to
employees who are called to active service that are too
numerous to discuss in this article.
If you have questions as to whether USERRA applies to
your situation, you are encouraged to contact your Petrie
& Stocking attorney to discuss your concerns
confidentially.
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