Sarah M. Block
Tue, 04/05/2022
On March 29, 2022, a federal district court in Georgia denied a motion to dismiss filed by Delta Airlines in a putative class action lawsuit alleging that the company violated the Uniformed Service Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by failing to provide paid leave benefits to employees taking short term military leave (i.e., military leave of 30 days or fewer). A federal district court in Washington is allowing a similar case to proceed in that state.
USERRA is a federal law protecting the employment rights of military service members—including reservists—and veterans. USERRA prohibits discrimination based upon military service, among other things.
The Georgia lawsuit, Haley et al. v. Delta Airlines Inc., Case No. 1:21-cv-1076-TCB (N.D. Ga.), was filed by two former employees who served in the Air Force Reserve and Florida Air National Guard during the time they were employed by Delta and alleges that the company violated the law by denying them, and others, paid leave benefits during periods of short term military leave. Significantly, the lawsuit alleges that Delta continues to pay an employee’s normal salary or wages during short term leaves of absence for reasons such as jury duty or bereavement leave but does not do the same for employees on short term military leave. In denying Delta’s motion to dismiss, the court held that under USERRA, employees who take military leave must be provided the same rights and benefits that are provided to employees who are absent from work for other reasons, including—as many courts nationwide have now agreed—paid leave benefits. The Court soundly rejected Delta’s claims to the contrary, as well as Delta’s claims that providing such benefits to reservists would establish preferential treatment for those employees. As such, the Court held that the plaintiffs plausibly alleged violations of USERRA which can continue through the litigation process.
The Washington lawsuit, Baker v. United Parcel Serv., Inc., Case No. 2:21-cv-0114 (E.D. Wash), contains similar allegations, with the plaintiffs alleging that they were improperly denied paid leave for short-term military service. The judge concluded that whether short-term military leave is similar enough to other forms of leave offered by UPS is a fact-based determination that cannot be resolved at the motion to dismiss stage.
If you have questions about your employment rights, including but not limited to your rights to certain types of paid leave, or believe you have been denied any protected employment benefits, please reach out to MSE at info@mselaborlaw.com.
