Legal Issues

Legal Issues

Q.1: What were the legal issues in this case?

Answer: The term USERRA is an acronym that stands for “Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act” (Green, 2003). There are many legal issues that are related to the case of Petty v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville & Davidson County. The first of these legal issues consists of a violation of USERRA. With the help of USERRA, an employer is just not allowed to delay the time period of reemployment of a soldier who returns back from the service. Petty in this regard claims that his employment was delayed due to his alleged dishonesty that he showed against Metro. The second legal issue was whether Petty was honest enough with his employer or not on the reason that he was discharged from the military services. After all the paper work is complete, he seemed to erase the portion which provided the reason for his discharge. Petty however was hired again by Metro but was not given the same position of a patrol sergeant but instead a similar position of that kind. Petty was now occasionally handling police reports and answering various phone calls on occasional basis. Professional Accountability office of Metro also conducted an investigation report in which Petty was lying on the paperwork concerning return to work by admitting that in Kuwait he faced all the charges held by military but still did not reveal that he was being accused of manufacturing and providing alcohol to the soldier enlisted. However, a lieutenant met Petty and after that this investigation was closed claiming that any allegation which Petty was untruthful about regarding his paperwork was not founded (Walsh, 2010).

Q.2: Explain how the reemployment provisions of the USERRA were violated in this case?

Answer: USERRA remains in its position in order to save its military personnel who try to come back to work after they have served their country for a long time. The focal debate thus is if Metro damaged USERRA in its treatment of Petty. He was previously a cop who left the department for animated calling with the United States Army and who looked for reemployment with the office after fulfillment of his service in military (Walsh, 2010). Petty's return was delayed by Metro based on information that they received in the personal history questionnaire that is required by all returning employees during the departments return to work process. Once metro did bring Petty back, it was no more a comparable or the same position. Now he was placed in an office position where most of the personals are placed during the time period when they are under investigation and trial phase. USERRA performs four functions. First, it will guarantee that all military personal can return to the job they were previously doing once they have completed their service and guarantees them the right of employment after their military service has been completed. Secondly, it enforces the employer to bring the military personal back at the similar or same job ...