QUESTION: I have an employee who is in the National Guard, and they have just told me that they are being deployed to support an emergency situation in another state. They are not sure how long they will be gone. While I support their service, it will be extremely hard for our small practice to cover their position when they are gone. What are my options?
ANSWER: Thank goodness there are people such as your employee who are willing to serve in the National Guard, the reserves, and other military branches so that we can have adequate support for emergencies. With that said, it is understandable that an employee’s unexpected leave can create hardship on employers. Without legal protection, employees who also serve in the military may not have a job when they return. For this reason, there are two federal laws - the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) that apply to military leave and military family leave. Both Acts provide eligible employees the right to, at minimum, unpaid leave, during their deployment and certain rights for re-employment upon their return.
FMLA, which was amended in 2008 to include military family leave entitlements, only applies to employers with at least 50 employees within a 75-mile radius. Specific employee eligibility requirements that can be found at the Department of Labor’s website - https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/benefits-leave/fmla. However, you said you are a...
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