Washington State USERRA Cases

These cases involve Washington Army and Air National Guard servicemembers, Washington based reservists, USERRA, and the Washington Law Against Discrimination.

Chris Cooper v. Prince Telecom, involves a Washington Army National Guard enlisted Soldier who asked his employer whether he could apply for a promotion but was told, via text message, that “with all your guard stuff and last min training you won’t be able to do it.” A copy of the complaint and embedded text message is available here. This case resolved.

Megan Rutan v. American Insure-All, involves a Washington Army National Guard officer who was fired six days after informing her boss that she was returning from military duty and demanding that her boss cease the military related workplace harassment she was experiencing. A copy of the complaint is available here. This case resolved.

Kevin Wolff v. David Evans & Associates, involves a Washington Air National Guard officer who was denied re-employment upon his return from a thirty-day military leave period. A copy of the complaint is available here. Mr. Wolff’s case resolved.

Marcus Kimm v. Aerotek, Inc. et. al. involves a Washington Air National Guard non-commissioned officer who was denied initial employment after informing his prospective employer, and that employer’s recruiting agency, of an upcoming military deployment. A copy of the complaint is available here.  On July 24, 2018, Aerotek filed papers with the court seeking to dismiss Mr. Kimm’s claims. Mr. Kimm response brief and statement of facts in support of his response are available here and here.  On October 24, 2018, the Court denied Aerotek’s attempt to have Mr. Kimm’s case dismissed. A copy of the Court’s order is available here.  Mr. Kimm’s case resolved.

J. Mitch Hall, et. al. v. L-3 Communications Corp., et al., is a class action lawsuit that involved L-3’s failure to hire members of the reserve components of the Armed Services into pilot positions and L-3’s failure to follow USERRA’s re-employment requirements as it relates to other L-3 employees who are members of the military reserves. A copy of the Third Amended Complaint is available here.  In 2018 L-3 agreed to settle the case for $2,000,000.00.  On October 30, 2018, the parties filed a Motion for Preliminary Approval and Settlement Agreement regarding the lawsuit. The New York Times article on the L-3 case is available here. The Air Force Times covered the case as well. On July 16, 2019, the Court approved the $2,000,000.00 settlement.

Travis Hillman v. Hayden Homes, LLC, involves a Washington Army National Guard Sergeant who was denied a $35,000.00 employer home purchase benefit immediately after he informed his employer that he was going on long-term military leave. A copy of Mr. Hillman’s lawsuit is available here. The parties agreed to resolve the Hillman case.

Stough v. Benton County, Washington, involves a Washington Army National Guard Soldier who was fired shortly after he was injured during a drill weekend. A copy of Mr. Stough’s complaint is available here. The case settled for $90,000.00.

Tighe v. King County, involves a U.S. Coast Guard Reserve officer/Deputy Sheriff who complained that King County violated USERRA by making him undergo additional training as a precondition of returning to his pre-deployment job and who was retaliated against on account of that protected activity. A copy of Mr. Tighe’s complaint is available here.  The case resolved.

Del Rosario v. Bates Technical College, involves the constructive discharge of a U.S. Air Force reservist. A copy of Ms. Del Rosario’s complaint is here.  The State of Washington removed the case to federal court. After the State removed the case Ms. Del Rosario filed a motion asking that the federal court remand the case back to state court. The Court granted Ms. Del Rosario’s motion and remanded the case to state court.  The case settled for $335,000.00.

Frye v. Central Pre-Mix, et. al., involves Megan Frye, a member of the Washington Army National Guard, who got fired four days after telling her boss that the Army National Guard was making her do additional military duty. A copy of Ms. Frye’s Second Amended Complaint is available here.  The case resolved.

Tran v. Waterfront Construction, involved Waterfront Construction threatening to fire Lisa Tran after Ms. Tran informed her employer that she had enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserves. A copy of Ms. Tran’s complaint is available here. The case has resolved.

Caleb Gutting v. SEA CON, LLC, this case involves Caleb Gutting who worked at SEA CON without any documented discipline issues for years but was then fired shortly after returning from an overseas deployment. A copy of his complaint is available here.  The case has resolved.

Ana Lugo v. Highline School District, this case involves Ana Lugo, a Navy Reservist, who was called away from her school teacher position to serve in the military. After serving honorably for less than five years Highline School District refused to promptly re-employ her. A copy of her complaint is available here.  Highline School District subsequently re-employed Ms. Lugo and paid her $110,000.00 to resolve her USERRA re-employment claims.

Martinson v. Central Pierce Fire & Rescue, this case involves Brett Martinson, a member of the Washington Army National Guard, who was passed over for various promotions during his employment with Central Pierce Fire & Rescue. A copy of his complaint is available here. The case has resolved.