USERRA

Under the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act ("USERRA") you have rights under federal law.

• The right not to be discriminated against because you served your country.
• The right to be promptly reemployed (usually within 14 days of you requesting reemployment).
• If you have an injury and cannot be reemployed in your pre-deployment position, your employer must find you a job that is as close to your pre-deployment position, with very few exceptions.
• If you cannot perform your pre-deployment job, your employer has a duty to make reasonable efforts to retrain you so that they can continue to employ you.

If your employer refuses to rehire you and they are found to have violated USERRA they are liable for the following damages:  

• Back Pay -
• Front Pay -
• Liquidated Damages - are double your monetary damages
• In addition, USERRA requires your employer to pay your attorney fees and litigation costs.

What employers does USERRA apply to?  

USERRA applies to all public and private employers in the United States including federal, state, and local governments, regardless of size. Don't let your employer tell you otherwise.   

Providing that a service member meets all criteria (click for criteria), USERRA requires employers to provide the following:  

• Allow employees to participate in military service
• Prompt reinstatement back into job following military service
• Accumulation of seniority, including pension plan benefits
• Reinstatement of health insurance
• Training or retraining of job skills, including accommodations for disabled service members
• Protection against discrimination.  

Reemployment Timeline  

USERRA Criteria  

USERRA Questions?  

Call Joe Napiltonia at: (615) 734-1199

Email Joe Napiltonia at: joenap@navyseallawyer.com

Joe tries to respond to all questions within 24 hours.