On Veterans Day, It’s Good to Remember Workplace Rules for Vets

In honor of this auspicious occasion, I thought it might be helpful to remind everyone of workplace requirements in place to protect all of our wonderful veterans and those currently serving in the military:

A good place to start is here, where there is a wealth of compliance assistance resources from the U.S. Department of Labor, including fact sheets, FAQs and e-tools.
Here’s a handy set of FAQs on USERRA (Uniformed Services Employment and Reemploment Rights Act).
Here’s the Blawg’s official USERRA cheat sheet.
Here’s a summary of FMLA rights related to military service members and their families.
Here’s the EEOC’s guide to handling veteran disability issues under the ADA.

USERRA: Basics of the law

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act is an oft-misunderstood law. Here are the basics that every employer should know:

All employers are covered by USERRA regardless of size.
USERRA provides that an employee who is absent due to service in the uniformed services is entitled to reemployment into the same or a comparable position as though s/he had been continuously employed.
In addition to reemployment, service members are entitled to certain benefits and retention rights and are protected against retaliation.
Potential penalties for noncompliance include reinstatement, back pay, attorneys’ fees and other damages.

This was originally published on Manpower Group’s Employment Blawg.