Treat employees on military leave similarly to those taking comparable types of leave

For those of you needing a good refresher on your obligations to employees who take leave to serve in the armed forces, the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided a case highlighting certain circumstances when you may need to pay them for that time.

Facts

Eric White, a United Airlines pilot, was also a member of the Air Force Reserve. Periodically, he was required to take short-term periods of military leave, usually lasting a day or two, during which he received no pay or benefits from the airline.

Under United’s applicable collective bargaining agreement (CBA), however, pilots received pay and continued to accrue certain benefits when they took other types of short-term leave (e.g., jury duty or sick leave), but not while they were on military leave.

White sued United alleging the airline violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). The relevant portion of the law provides that employees on military leave are “entitled to such other rights and benefits not determined by seniority as are generally provided by the employer [to employees who are] on furlough or leave of absence.”

Servicemember employees entitled to comparable benefits

USERRA allows employees to take leave for military service. Generally, the time can be unpaid, especially in cases of long-term leaves (e.g., if the employee is deployed). Under the Act, however, employees taking military leave also must be treated equally to other workers on similar short-term leave.