Area employers talk hiring guard, reserve service members
ZANESVILLE, Ohio- State and local officials and business owners learned more about hiring service members in the Reserves and National Guard.
The Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) is a Department of Defense program that protects the rights of service members and promotes understanding with their civilian employers.
The organization stopped in Zanesville on Wednesday to familiarize area business owners with the program.
“We’re doing outreach because ESGR is a name that is not common. We’re marketing the brand name, we’re an actual Department of Defense Office so we go out there to encourage employers to learn about it, to educate them to influence the employers to be more guard [and] reserve friendly,” said Randy Gasser, vice chair of Ohio ESGR.
The program aims to bridge the gap between service members and possible employers. It also works to clear up common misconceptions such as days off for duty and legal rights that protect civilian jobs.
“Some people are leery because of the length of the time that the war has been going on people are deployed all the time. So some people worry about it a little bit, but we encourage them not to,” said Gasser.
The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) is defined as the federal law that protects the rights and benefits for veterans and service members of Reserve components.
ESGR advises with the rights and responsibilities of members of the National Guard and Reserve when it comes to time off, deployment and reemployment, amongst other requirements.
“Th law is very complicated so we simplify it, we make it easy for them to understand,” said Gasser.
Gasser said they will be traveling across the state on a campaign to spread the message and help employers understand how valuable service members can be for their business.
“These guys that go overseas and that serve our country, that go into harms way voluntarily; I think they deserve to have our support,” Gasser said.
