In 1993, Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The FMLA was intended to balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families. Under the FMLA, many employees are guaranteed the right to take unpaid leave.
General Overview
The Employee Retirement Income Act of 1974 ERISA is a federal statute that dictates how employee benefit plans provided by private employers are administered. ERISA rules do not ordinarily allow pension assets to be assigned or alienated; however, one major exception applies when a pension plan participant becomes separated and divorced. In such a case, pension assets may be subject to a property division under a court order or court approval of a settlement agreement.
Military leave for employees is governed by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA), sometimes referred to as the Military Leave Act. The USERRA prohibits discrimination in employment against members of the U.S. military or military reserves who seek leaves of absence from their employment to serve in the military. USERRA requires an employer to reinstate employees to their jobs at the end of their military leaves; they may not be terminated or demoted. In addition, if the employee is otherwise qualified, the employee must receive any job promotions or pay increases he or she would have received if leave had not been taken. For purposes of benefits, time spent on leave must be counted as time on the job. Even if an employee who takes military leave is an at-will employee, he or she may not be fired without cause for a year after they return.
Fair Labor Standards Act)
