Reservists know role and avoid employer conflicts

Published Oct. 14, 2009
By Capt. Bryan Lewis
315th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

CHARLESTON AFB, S.C. -- The National Guard and Reserve have large footprints. Together, with their 1.3 million members, they make up approximately 48 percent of the Nation's Total Force.

Take into account the amount of employers the Citizen Airmen work for, 125,000, and that imprint gets substantially larger.

When duty calls, service members are required to spend time away from the workplace. With the amount of training and deployments in addition to drill weekends and annual tour, a respectful and supportive relationship between employers and guardsmen and reservists is crucial. This is where Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve steps in.

As part of the Department of Defense, ESGR's mission, according to its Web site, is to "gain and maintain employer support for Guard and Reserve service by recognizing outstanding support, increasing awareness of the law, and resolving conflict through mediation."

"ESGR provides a multitude of resources for service members and their employers," said Debra Baldwin, local ombudsman. "I encourage all members to visit their Web site, as well as stop in or call me if issues arise. The most important thing members can do is keep their employers informed and document their communication of such."

Ombudsmen, like Mrs. Baldwin, and Capt. Wayne Capps, 315th Airlift Wing public affairs officer, are available locally to assist in resolving conflicts with employers.

To avoid disputes, the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act was put into law in 1994. A federal law, enacted to help those who serve or have served upon their return from active service, it ensures that members "are not disadvantaged in their civilian careers because of their service; are promptly reemployed in their civilian jobs upon their return from duty; and are not discriminated against in employment based on past, present, or future military service."

Though the law is in place to protect service members from employer discrimination, building employer support begins with the employee.

In fact, Dennis McCarthy, assistant secretary of defense for Reserve affairs, along with other Reserve leaders, signed a statement of support for employers during a ceremony at the Pentagon Oct. 13, 2009. Additionally, employers also signed statements during the ceremony in order to show their understanding and support of USERRA.

"We traditionally ask employers to sign these kinds of certificates, but it's really important that [reserve-component] service chiefs representing the military leadership express their support as well," said McCarthy during the ceremony. "It's clearly a mutually supporting relationship that we need, and so this signing reflects that."

As the 2010 fiscal year begins, new orders often follow. Fortunately, ESGR offers some important tips guardsmen and reservists should take to avoid job conflicts. These include:

· Talk to the boss: No matter what the military assignment, inform the employer.

· Know the Federal Law: Reservists and their employers should become familiar with USERRA.

· Provide Drill Schedules: Provide schedules to employers for drills and annual training as soon as possible. When orders are released or change, Reservists should notify the employer as soon as they are aware of them.

For more tips, as well as additional ESGR resources, visit http://www.esgr.org/ or call public affairs at (843) 963-2036.