Leon Belaustegui filed suit against the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). He alleged that after returning from more than nine years of active duty in the U.S. Air Force, he was wrongfully denied hours credit and promotion to Class B status at Port Hueneme, California. Belaustegui argued that, absent his military service, he would have attained Class B status, which offered more job opportunities and benefits.
Belaustegui originally worked as a Casual longshore worker beginning in 2000. Promotion to Class B depended on hours worked. In 2004, he enlisted in the Air Force, reenlisted in 2007, deployed to Kuwait in 2008, and ultimately returned in 2013. Upon his return, he sought hours credit and reinstatement to a higher classification under the CBA’s USERRA provisions. The local labor committee reemployed him but deferred his request for credit to the coast-wide labor committee. That committee denied his request more than two years later, citing his military service exceeding the five-year limit without qualifying for an exception.
In 2019, Belaustegui filed a federal lawsuit under 38 U.S.C. § 4311. The district court granted summary judgment to the defendants. It held that Belaustegui failed to allege the denial of a "benefit of employment" under USERRA and could not challenge the refusal to reemploy him as a Class B worker through § 4311. The court also did not address whether the five-year service limit applied to his military tenure.
The Ninth Circuit held that Belaustegui had sufficiently alleged a denial of benefits protected under USERRA. It found that both the Class B promotion and associated hours credit qualified as "benefits of employment." The court rejected the view that such benefits must also be offered to non-military employees to be covered under USERRA. It also held that Belaustegui could pursue a claim based on the escalator principle, which entitles returning service members to the position they would have attained with reasonable certainty had their employment not been interrupted.
The court determined that the hours credit and Class B promotion process, as implemented by the collective bargaining agreement, reflected USERRA’s reemployment protections. It concluded that Belaustegui’s allegations encompassed a valid discrimination claim under § 4311, even though the hours credit policy applied only to servicemembers.
Additionally, the Ninth Circuit found that the district court erred by requiring Belaustegui to bring an escalator principle claim solely under § 4316. It reaffirmed its earlier decision in Huhmann v. FedEx that such claims may be pursued under § 4311 when alleging denial of a reemployment benefit.
The Ninth Circuit did not determine whether Belaustegui’s service qualified for the statutory exception to the five-year limit. Belaustegui claimed that his extended service fell under the exception for those ordered to active duty during a national emergency. He stated that his 2007 reenlistment was involuntary, although he lacked documentation beyond his own statements. The court remanded the case for the district court to resolve the factual and legal issues surrounding this defense.
The Ninth Circuit vacated the district court’s summary judgment and remanded for further proceedings on Belaustegui’s USERRA discrimination claim.
If your military service affected your civilian career and you’ve been denied reemployment, promotion, or benefits, Whitcomb, Selinsky PC handles USERRA cases involving job reinstatement, seniority credit, and employment classification. Reach out to schedule a consultation and learn how our team can assist with your claim.