Called to Serve

When you hire an employee for your contract shop, you ideally want someone who understands teamwork and zeros in on tasks and deadlines. Hopefully, that candidate also has great leadership potential for a future supervisory role.

Assuming that’s the perfect profile, then an employee with a military background would be a great asset on your team. But there are realities for owners to deal with when it comes to having such workers onboard. After all, they could be called away for an extended time—up to 24 months in one stretch for National Guard and Army Reserve members. More than 525,000 members of the Guard and Reserve units have been called to Iraq and Afghanistan since Sept. 11, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

When these workers return, federal and state laws afford them wide-ranging protection of their job rights.

“Military leave laws are extremely employee-friendly, and many employers find it burdensome to comply,” says Jennifer Blum Feldman, a labor and employment attorney with Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen LLP, based in Philadelphia. “The hardest hit, however, are the small employers who do not have the luxury of a large work force to cover for those who are absent due to military leave.”

Covering Ground
The basis of the issue is the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, which mandates employers to allow military leave for employees. The major provision, according to Feldman: Up to five years leave is protected. It not only covers active duty and training but also the time it takes to undergo a military fitness exam, to get personal affairs in order prior to active duty, and even to take part in funeral-duty honors. When the employee is finished serving, he or she must be regain employment in a position that reflects the advanced status the employee would have been in despite leave.

Local laws don’t stop there. “State laws may provide additional protections to employees, so employers need to understand and comply with those laws,” Feldman says.

Employers caught skirting these regulations can face severe consequences. “A court may order an employer to compensate a claimant for lost wages or benefits,” says Elizabeth Milito, senior executive counsel at the National Federation of Independent Business, based in Washington, D.C.

Value Those Who Serve
Ultimately, hiring men and women who serve our nation good for morale and for business, as long as owners plan accordingly.

The employer and employee should discus the timing of the possible deployment and any business developments that might happen during the absence. “One lawn care business owner felt it was an honor to employ a member of the National Guard,” Milito says. “He admitted it was difficult to manage without the employee for 18 months. But by maintaining open communications and knowing what was expected from both the employee and employer, it helped avoid conflicts.”

When an employee is called for duty, owners must fulfill the employee’s role while he or she is on leave. Hiring a temporary employee is a good option, as long as that employee knows the job will only last for a specific time period, Feldman says.

Resources Are Available
Another way deal with deployment is to learn more about your local National Guard and Reserve programs. “Go to open houses and public functions at local military units,” says Beth Sherman, a spokesperson for the Department of Defense’s Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. “Talk to military leaders in your community. Get a sense of where your employee or employees fit into the ‘big picture’ of national defense.”

Check out the U.S. Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Services (VETS). Designed to help veterans returning to the workplace, VETS also presents materials that are useful for employers.

“Guard and Reserve members are focused on business-mission accomplishment and profitability,” says Ted Daywalt, president of VetJobs.com, a leading online job board for veterans. “They are both leaders and followers with skills that are directly transferable to civilian jobs at no cost to the employer. Employing these people is a big plus for the employer, and the nation.”