Compliance Stuff

On January 2, 2025, former President Joe Biden signed the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act (Dole Act) into law. The bill was named in honor of Senator Elizabeth Dole, who has a long history of advocating for veterans and their families alongside her husband, now deceased Senator Bob Dole, who lost the use of his right hand while serving in World War II and famously held a pen in public to avoid shaking hands. The Dole Act significantly bolsters the protections provided by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) to veterans and service members as well as providing other benefits. These benefits include several significant changes which impact employers whose workforces include veterans and service members. Quick Hits The Dole Act provides minimum liquidated damage awards of $50,000 for certain USERRA violations and mandates awards for attorneys’ fees for successful USERRA plaintiffs. The Dole Act expands...

The Dole Act recently amended and expanded employment protections afforded veterans by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). Read more about amendments to USERRA’s anti-retaliation provisions, potential remedies, and more here:  Increased Workplace Protections for Veterans: Dole Act Amends USERRA – Jackson Lewis . Source(s): Nieman, M. F. (2025, April 21).  USERRA Amendments: What Employers Need to Know . Disability, Leave & Health Management Blog. https://www.disabilityleavelaw.com/2025/04/articles/leave-policies/userra/userra-amendments-what-employers-need-to-know/ Increased Workplace Protections for Veterans: Dole Act Amends USERRA - Jackson Lewis . (2025, April 21). Jackson Lewis. https://www.jacksonlewis.com/insights/increased-workplace-protections-veterans-dole-act-amends-userra ‌ ‌

On January 2, 2025, then-President Biden signed into law the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act (Dole Act) , a bipartisan bill that expands healthcare and other benefits for veterans . Among its various pro-veteran measures, the Dole Act introduced noteworthy amendments to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). USERRA, enacted in 1994, prohibits employers from discriminating and retaliating against veterans and service members because of their military status or service. USERRA also provides reemployment rights and other rights and benefits to workers whose civilian jobs are voluntarily or involuntarily interrupted by military obligations. The Dole Act is the first amendment to USERRA since the 2022 Civilian Reservist Emergency Workforce Act (CREW Act) , which extended its coverage to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reservists. The Dole Act further enhances job protections for military member...