Class Action Says FedEx Failed to Pay Servicemembers for Short-Term Military Leave

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FedEx has failed to properly pay certain employees who took short-term military leave, a proposed class action claims. 

The 17-page case out of Delaware alleges FedEx has run afoul of the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by paying non-pilot, permanent employees who take leave for non-military reasons, such as jury duty, medical absence or bereavement leave, yet failing to pay wages to servicemembers who take short-term military leave. 

“Due to FedEx’s violations, Plaintiff and other servicemembers employed by FedEx have received less compensation than they would have received had FedEx provided them with pay during their short-term military leave on an equal basis as employees who took other comparable forms of non-military leave,” the complaint summarizes. 

Short-term military leave is defined by the complaint as leave that lasts for 14 days or fewer. Under USERRA, an employer must provide an employee who takes military leave with the same rights and benefits as similarly situated employees who take comparable leave unrelated to military service, per the case. 

The plaintiff, a member of the Indiana Air National Guard since 1998, has satisfied his military leave requirements by participating in monthly drills or by performing several months’ worth of drills in one consolidated period each quarter, the suit relays. Per the complaint, the man has taken unpaid, short-term military leave at various times since 2018, including for each of the annual two-week drills and for a number of shorter monthly drills. 

The lawsuit contends that jury duty and sick and bereavement leave are all comparable to short-term military leave, particularly “in terms of the ability of the employee to choose when to take leave.” From the complaint:

“Jury duty occurs because an employee is commanded to appear to serve on a petite or grand jury duty. Sick leave is typically taken due to a short-term, involuntary medical condition that prevents an employee from working. Bereavement leave is taken due to a death of a family member. And short-term military leave occurs due to a servicemember’s obligation to perform military service in the Armed Forces based on a schedule set by and/or orders issued by the military.”

 The lawsuit looks to cover current and former permanent non-pilot Federal Express Corporation employees who took short-term military leave (period of 14 days or fewer) from their job with FedEx at any time between October 10, 2004 and the date of judgment in this case and were not paid the compensation they would have earned had they not been on leave. 

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