"Our citizen-soldiers put themselves in harm's way to defend our freedoms, and now it's our turn to be there for them. These regulations will ensure that the seniority, promotion, health care, pensions and other benefits of our citizen-soldiers are protected when they return home to the jobs they left to serve our country."
Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao

Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao recently announced the publication of rules for the Uniformed Services Employment & Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). The new regulations are written in plain English and in a Q&A format and will clarify employer rights and responsibilities under USERRA.

The rules are particularly critical now, Chao said, when the United States has the largest group of mobilized National Guard and Reserve members since World War II. Since Sept. 11, 2001, almost 530,000 reserve-component members have been mobilized, many for more than a year of duty.

This is the first time since enactment of USERRA that DOL has developed regulations to explain and clarify the law. USERRA protects employment rights and benefits of service members upon their return to civilian life and prohibits discrimination against past and present members of the uniformed services and establishes reemployment rights for service members who want to return to the jobs they held prior to military service.

Secretary Chao said the regulations will ensure employment rights will be implemented without delay and will clarify requirements for both employers and service members. The final regulations address questions presented by employers, union representatives and other interested parties following the release of the proposed regulations.

For complete information about USERRA, including the new regulations, USERRA eLaws Advisor, USERRA Resource Guide and more, go to VETS USERRA web link at www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm.