USERRA
What is the law on employment discrimination against active duty military members?
Federal law prohibits employers from discriminating or retaliating against military members – active duty, Reserves, National Guard, and veterans – in employment.
The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) mandates that employers:
- Give you time off to serve if you get called up for active duty or for deployment;
- Keep your job open for you and give it back to you when you get back from deployment or back on reserve status; and
- Bump you up to the same pay and seniority/promotion status when you get back that you would have received had you remained continually employed and not gone on active duty.
USERRA also prevents employers from not hiring you, terminating you, or demoting you because of your military or veteran status. If you believe you were terminated based on your military status, let a Minneapolis employment lawyer fight for your rights.
What is the law in Minnesota on veteran’s preference in employment?
Minnesota law gives veterans who work for or want to work for the State of Minnesota (or municipalities) a veteran’s preference in hiring and promotion, and specific protections from termination. The Minnesota Veterans Protection Act also includes employment protections for military spouses and disabled veterans.
For a legal consultation with a veterans and military lawyer serving Minneapolis, call 612-349-2729
What if I deployed for the National Guard and now I can’t get my job back?
First of all, thank you for your service to our country. Ashwin Madia served in the Marine Corps for 4 years – he knows the sacrifices that military members and their families make for our country.
Second, if you deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, or some other part of the world because you were called up to active duty, and now your civilian employer won’t give you your job back – or won’t give you the same rate of pay or promotion that you would have earned if you didn’t deploy – shame on them. You’re right to want to do something about it.
Third, make sure that take advantage of state benefits designed to help people going through tough times. Apply for unemployment benefits. And, contact COBRA to make sure you and your family are covered for health insurance.
Fourth, write everything down that happened to you. Write down the date that you were terminated, who terminated you, what they precisely said was the reason for your termination, and who else was present. Write down whether you think the reason your employer gave you was accurate or not, and why. Write down the names of employees that you think may have useful information. Write down the types of documents or emails that you think may have good information about your case. Write down everything – the reason for this is that your memory will probably fade over time and you want to document things while they’re fresh in your mind. If you pursue a lawsuit, your trial likely won’t be for at least 12 to 18 months, so you want to have something that you can refer to – write everything down.
Fifth, immediately send a letter or email request to your employer requesting your personnel file and the reason for your termination. Under Minnesota law, your employer needs to provide it to you. If your employer hasn’t paid you all of your wages or given you your last paycheck, make sure to request those wages in writing also (by letter or email).
Last, call us to talk about your case. You’re entitled to more than just gratitude from our country for your service. At the very least, you’re entitled to get your job back at the same rate and benefits that you would have earned had you remained continuously employed.
Minneapolis Veterans and Military Lawyer Near Me 612-349-2729
How Much is My Case Worth?
This is absolutely a good question to ask as you make a decision on whether to pursue a case in court or not. Starting an employment case is a big decision and you should know what your potential return is for the investment of your time and energy.
The short answer is that the value of your case depends on a lot of things, like:
- the strength of your case on the merits;
- the amount of damages you’ve suffered;
- whether your employer has the ability to pay a large amount; and
- your tolerance for risk.
We get this question so much that we’ve created a separate, detailed page going through each of these factors, right here.
You may be entitled to back pay and front pay damages, emotional distress compensation, and your attorney fees and costs. You may even be entitled to get your job back.
Click to contact our Minneapolis Employment Lawyers today
What is the Statute of Limitations for USERRA military entitlement, retaliation, and discrimination claims?
USERRA doesn’t have a statute of limitations and expressly precludes any state from applying its own statute of limitations. But at least one court held that the general federal statute of limitations of 4 years applies. Also, if a military member or veteran unreasonably delays in bringing a claim and the employer is prejudiced as a result, then the employer can assert a doctrine called laches to try to prevent the claim. The best practice is to contact an attorney immediately if you think you may have a claim.
Contact Our Minnesota Military Employment Attorneys.
You must act quickly when it comes to employment claims. If you wait, there may be strict statutes of limitation that will bar you from filing any claim at all against your employer. Call Madia Law today to discuss your case.
First, contact our office and tell us about your situation. You’ll talk with our staff for about 5-10 minutes. They’ll get some basic information about you and your case.
There’s some information that we’ll need when you call. We will want to know who you worked for, what kind of work you did, for how long worked there, how much you earned, if/when you were terminated, the reason given by your employer for any discipline and termination, and why do you think your employer did something unlawful or wrongful. If you have this information handy, it will allow us to proceed more quickly.
We will get back to you shortly – usually within a few hours. If your potential case is a little outside of our wheelhouse, we may refer you to attorneys, agencies, or organizations that we think might be better suited to handle your situation. Our goal is to ensure you get the best and most appropriate help possible for your particular situation. If that’s not us, we’ll try to tell you immediately and point you in the right direction.
If we think that we might be able help you, we’ll set an appointment for you to talk with one of our employment lawyers. We’ll discuss your case, and give you our honest assessment of its strengths, weaknesses, and value. If we then mutually agree that Madia Law will represent you, we will talk about the process of moving forward with your case.
When you talk with our employment lawyers, please be sure to have all relevant documents that you have in your possession. For example, that could include: pay-stubs, personnel files, employment handbooks/policies, letters from your employer (including your termination letter), any text messages or emails that you think are important, and any other documents that you think might be helpful.
Call 612-349-2729 or complete a Case Evaluation form
