Reserves and National Guard members face particularly difficult challenges as they can be called up at a moment’s notice, and their tours of duty can be extended. These requirements can put a tremendous strain on their ability to maintain their employment.

Fortunately, there is a federal anti-discrimination law that protects armed services members facing this difficult situation. The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) provides that most military personnel must be returned to their jobs when returning from serving in the military, and it also prohibits discrimination based on an employee’s military service.

The USERRA applies to members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, and Public Health Service commissioned corps, as well as reservists in each of each of these branches.  It includes active duty, active and inactive training, funeral honors duty, and periods of absence for the purpose of obtaining a fitness for duty examination. The USERRA covers nearly all employees, including part-time and probationary employees, and it covers almost all U.S. employers, whatever their size.

The law also requires employers to reemploy returning service members if the following five circumstances are met:

• The returning service member was in a civilian job;
• The returning service member must have given notice that he or she was leaving the job in order to perform uniformed service, unless notice was impossible or impractical under the circumstances;
• The period of service did not exceed five years;
• The returning service member must not have received a dishonorable or other form of punitive discharge from the service; and
• The returning service member must report back to work in a timely fashion after being discharged or submit a timely application for reemployment.

The time limits when you must return to work depend upon the length of your service. If all of these five conditions are met, the returning service member must be returned to his or her employment.