Dallas Employment Lawyer Blog
Dallas Employment Trial Lawyer Riley Carter
Members of the military and uniformed services make extraordinary sacrifices in service to our country. Federal law recognizes that those sacrifices should not come at the cost of a civilian career. The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) is designed to protect service members and veterans from discrimination, retaliation, and unlawful job loss related to their military service.
At Rob Wiley, P.C., we regularly represent employees whose rights have been violated after they served—or continued to serve—in the military. Understanding the basics of USERRA is the first step in protecting those rights.
USERRA is a federal law that applies to employers, including private companies and state and local governments. Its core purpose is to ensure that individuals who leave civilian employment for military service can return to work without penalty once their service is complete.
USERRA covers both voluntary and involuntary service, during both peacetime and wartime, and protects members of the Armed Forces, National Guard, Reserves, and certain other uniformed services.
Employers may not deny employment, reemployment, promotion, or other job benefits because of an employee’s military service, past service, or future service obligations. Retaliation is also prohibited—an employer cannot punish an employee for asserting USERRA rights or assisting someone else in doing so.
In practice, this means an employer cannot:
- Fire or discipline an employee for missing work due to military duty
- Refuse to promote an employee because of National Guard or Reserve obligations
- Treat a service member differently because military service is “inconvenient”
One of USERRA’s most important protections is the right to be reemployed after military service. If certain conditions are met—such as providing advance notice when possible and returning to work within required timeframes—the employee is entitled to reinstatement.
The law generally requires employers to place returning service members in the position they would have attained had their employment not been interrupted by military service, with the same seniority, status, and pay. This is often referred to as the “escalator position” principle.
USERRA also protects employee benefits. Time spent in military service must be treated as a leave of absence for purposes of seniority‑based benefits, and employers must make reasonable efforts to help returning employees qualify for their positions, including training or retraining if necessary.
If a service member returns with a service‑connected disability, the employer may have additional obligations to provide reasonable accommodations or reemployment in a comparable position, absent undue hardship.
USERRA claims may be pursued through the U.S. Department of Labor or directly in federal court. Importantly, there is no statute of limitations for USERRA claims, and employees do not have to exhaust administrative remedies before filing suit.
Because these cases often involve detailed factual and legal analysis, early legal guidance can make a critical difference.
If you are a service member or veteran and believe your employer has violated your rights under USERRA, you do not have to navigate the process alone.
If you think you have a claim, please reach out to me, Riley Carter, at Rob Wiley, P.C. for a consultation. We are committed to protecting the rights of employees and holding employers accountable under federal law.