USERRA, also known as the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, is a United States federal law enacted in 1994 that protects the employment rights of individuals who voluntarily or involuntarily leave their civilian employment to serve in the uniformed services.
This act provides certain protections to military service members, including current members of the Armed Forces, National Guard, Reserve, and other uniformed services. USERRA ensures that these individuals can take leave from their civilian jobs to fulfill their military duties without facing discrimination or negative consequences.
Under USERRA, employers are obligated to reemploy the returning service members in their former positions, or in comparable positions, with the same seniority, benefits, and pay they would have received if they had continued working during their military absence. The act also provides protection against discrimination in hiring, promotion, and other employment practices based on a person's military service or obligation.
USERRA sets forth guidelines for notification, eligibility, and enforcement of the law's provisions. It specifies that an employee is required to give advance notice to their employer of their military service leave, allows for up to five years of cumulative military leave without risking the individual's reemployment rights, and establishes government agencies such as the Department of Labor and the Department of Justice to enforce and adjudicate USERRA-related complaints and disputes.
In summary, USERRA is a federal law that safeguards the employment rights of military service members and protects them from discriminatory practices by employers, ensuring that upon returning from their service, they can reclaim their positions or receive comparable ones without any adverse consequences.
