As the situation in the Middle East progresses, and National Guard and Reservists are called to serve, employers will likely have employees who require leave of absence to fulfill their obligations to the military. While under federal law, the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) guarantees the rights of military service members to take a leave of absence, California has several laws that also protect those serving in the military.

Military Leave

Under California law, employees who are members of the reserve corps of the armed forces of the U.S., the National Guard, or the Naval Militia shall be entitled to a temporary leave of absence without pay while engaged in military duty for a period not to exceed 17 calendar days annually. This leave is typically used for military training or similar.

There are also anti-discrimination laws that provide job protection for members of the military when they are performing ordered military duty.

Military Spouse Leave

Employers with 25 or more employees are required to provide up to 10 days of unpaid leave to spouses of military members while the employee’s military spouse is on leave from deployment during a period of military conflict.

California’s Family Rights Act (CFRA)

Under the CFRA, employers are required to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave during a 12-month period, due to a qualifying exigency related to the covered active duty or call to covered active duty of an employee’s spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent in the Armed Forces of the United States. The provided leave period can be utilized for diverse occasions and purposes, from spending time with the military spouse before deployment, managing household affairs, or assisting children during the military spouse’s deployment.

To complement this leave, covered employees may seek state benefits under California’s paid family leave.

San Francisco Military Leave Pay Protection Act

Certain employers with employees in San Francisco must provide paid leave to employees taking leave of military duty. Under the law, employers with 100 or more employees worldwide must comply with the ordinance for their covered San Francisco employees. The ordinance covers employees who work within the geographic boundaries of San Francisco if they are members of the reserve corps of the United States Armed Forces, the National Guard, or other uniformed service organizations of the U.S.

Under the ordinance, a covered employer must pay supplemental compensation to the covered employee when the employee is on leave for military duty, up to 30 calendar days in a calendar year. The supplemental compensation is the difference between the employee’s gross military pay and the amount of gross pay the employee would have received from the employer based on the employee’s regular work schedule.

If you have questions about leave for military members or related issues, contact a Jackson Lewis attorney to discuss.