By Brittany R. Ballenstedt
A demonstration project designed to study which of two federal agencies is better suited to investigate military service members' complaints about their federal employment rights was inconclusive and merits further review, members of a Senate committee said Wednesday.
Congress created the demonstration project in 2004 after criticism from several Guard members and reservists that the Labor Department's Veterans Employment and Training Service took far too long to investigate alleged violations of the 1994 Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act at federal agencies. The law is designed to protect veterans from employment discrimination resulting from their service.
"As our troops are returning home from battle, many of them seek to return to the jobs they held prior to their military service," said Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii. "I must admit to being particularly upset at the volume of claims related to federal service."
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