In addition, VBIA 2008 requires DOJ, DOL, and OSC to submit quarterly  reports to Congress on their compliance with the deadlines. DOL, DOJ, and OSC Were Generally Timely in Meeting VBIA Deadlines, but Issues Remain Regarding Notification of Rights by DOL

		DOL Has Generally Met VBIA and Extended Deadlines, but Some Servicemembers who Filed Hard Copy Complaints Were Not Notified of Rights

Our analysis showed that in the 1,663 investigations included in our  review, DOL generally met the original deadline or a new deadline agreed  to by the servicemember. However, because VBIA 2008 does not  require DOL to report on the extent to which it meets the new requirement  to notify servicemembers of their rights in writing within 5 days of  receiving the complaint, and DOL does not maintain and monitor such  data, Congress and DOL cannot be assured that servicemembers who file  complaints are adequately being informed of their USERRA process rights  in accordance with VBIA 2008. In about 7 percent of the cases, DOL did not have evidence of  notification of rights. According to DOJ, complaints against state employers are not  covered under the 60-day deadline. DOJ Does Not Apply Statutory Deadline Requirements to Cases against State Employers

Our analysis showed that 6 of 12 cases against state employers took more  than 60 days to process. Comparatively, 23 of 189 cases against private or  local government employers exceeded the 60-day deadline. Therefore,  servicemembers who are employed by state governments may not be  receiving the same treatment as other servicemembers in terms of the  timeliness of USERRA complaint processing. Specifically, DOJ officials stated that the  statutory deadline only applies where the Attorney General makes a  decision whether to “appear on behalf of, and act as attorney for” the  servicemember. DOJ Did Not Report on Time Facilitating Settlement

Our analysis showed that in 6 of 13 private employer cases where the  servicemember was involved in settlement negotiations and DOJ declined  representation, DOJ notified the servicemember of its decision to decline  representation but continued to aid the parties with facilitating a  settlement. However, the three agencies did not use the same criteria for  including the number of cases that exceeded or met the statutory deadline  in their quarterly reports. DOL Data Presented in Quarterly Reports Were Generally Reliable, but DOL Does Not Always Correct Its Database after Preparing its Reports

Although the data contained in DOL’s quarterly USERRA reports during  the time of our review were generally consistent with our analysis of data  from its USERRA database, DOL’s process for identifying and correcting  errors in its quarterly reports accounts for some of the differences we  found. Because  DOL does not consistently make corrections to the data in its USERRA  database, DOL cannot ensure it has accurate and readily available data to  monitor, track, and report on its performance in meeting VBIA 2008  requirements. DOJ Reports Were Generally Accurate, but DOJ Does Not Have a Reliable Process for Producing Quarterly Reports

Although the data contained in DOJ’s quarterly reports that we analyzed  were generally consistent with our analysis of the data from its  WordPerfect log, DOJ does not have a standard, repeatable process to  input USERRA data and produce its quarterly reports. We recommend that the Secretary of Labor direct the Assistant Secretary  for the Veterans’ Employment and Training Service to  ensure that a system is in place to monitor compliance with  notification of rights requirements similar to those used to assess  compliance with other statutory deadlines, including maintaining data  on such compliance;    develop guidance and oversight mechanisms to ensure that changes  are entered into the USERRA database as the quarterly reporting data  are updated; and  establish procedures to ensure that quarterly USERRA reports are  submitted to Congress within 30 days of the end of each quarter, as  required by VBIA 2008. Matters for Congressional Consideration

To help ensure that that servicemembers who file complaints are  adequately being informed of their USERRA complaint process rights  in accordance with VBIA 2008, Congress should consider amending  USERRA to require DOL to report on the extent to which it is notifying  complainants of their USERRA complaint process rights within 5 days  of filing a complaint. Staff who made major contributions to this report are listed  in appendix V.

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

Our objectives were to assess the extent to which the Department of Labor  (DOL), Office of Special Counsel (OSC), and Department of Justice (DOJ)  (1) met Veterans’ Benefits Improvement Act of 2008’s (VBIA 2008)  complaint processing timeliness requirements between October 10, 2008,  and December 31, 2009, and (2) submitted timely and reliable quarterly  reports to Congress as required by VBIA 2008.
Why GAO Did This Study

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) protects the employment and reemployment rights of individuals who leave their employment to perform uniformed service. Concerned with the timeliness of USERRA complaint processing and data reliability of agency reports, Congress imposed timeliness requirements for the Department of Labor (DOL), Department of Justice (DOJ), and Office of Special Counsel (OSC) under the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2008 (VBIA 2008) and required agencies to submit quarterly reports to Congress on the extent of their compliance with the requirements. As required by VBIA, this report assesses whether the agencies (1) met VBIA timeliness requirements for USERRA complaint processing, and (2) submitted reliable and timely quarterly reports. GAO analyzed data in each agency's USERRA database, and the extent to which those data were consistent with the quarterly reports.

What GAO Found

DOL, DOJ, and OSC generally were timely in meeting VBIA 2008 deadlines to process complaints, but issues remain regarding notification of rights. Under VBIA 2008, DOL must complete its investigation within 90 days of receiving a complaint. If the complaint is not resolved and the servicemember requests to have the complaint referred, DOL must send the case to DOJ (if against a nonfederal employer) or OSC (if against a federal employer) within 60 days of receiving the request for referral. Within 60 days of receiving the case from DOL, DOJ, and OSC must make a decision on whether to represent the servicemember. Any of the three agencies may seek consent to extend the applicable deadline. GAO's analysis showed that DOL, DOJ, and OSC generally met the original or extended deadlines to process complaints. Although DOL does not maintain data in its USERRA database on notifying servicemembers of their USERRA complaint processing rights within 5 days of receiving the complaint, GAO estimated that in about 7 percent of the cases, DOL did not document notification of rights. Because VBIA 2008 does not require DOL to report on this requirement and DOL does not maintain and monitor such data, Congress and DOL cannot be assured that all servicemembers are adequately being informed of their USERRA process rights in accordance with VBIA 2008. According to DOJ, the 60-day statutory deadline does not apply to state employer cases. GAO's analysis showed that 6 of 12 cases against state employers took more than 60 days to process. Comparatively, 23 of 189 cases against private or local government employers exceeded the 60-day deadline. Therefore, servicemembers who are employed by state governments may not be receiving the same treatment in terms of timeliness that other servicemembers are receiving under USERRA. In addition, GAO's analysis showed that in 6 of 13 cases where the servicemember was involved in settlement negotiations and DOJ declined representation, DOJ notified the servicemember of its decision but continued to aid the parties with facilitating a settlement. VBIA 2008 does not require agencies to report on their time spent after making a decision on representation. For DOL, DOJ, and OSC, the data contained in the quarterly reports during the time of our review were generally consistent with our analysis. However, the three agencies did not use the same criteria for including the number of cases that exceeded or met the statutory deadline in their quarterly reports. DOL and DOJ were consistently late in submitting quarterly reports to Congress, by as much as 46 days for DOL and by as much as 40 days for DOJ. DOL does not always correct errors in its USERRA database after preparing its quarterly reports and therefore cannot ensure it has accurate, readily available data to monitor its performance in meeting USERRA requirements. DOJ does not have a standard, repeatable process to input USERRA data and produce its quarterly reports.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that the three agencies use consistent reporting criteria and that the Attorney General and Secretary of Labor improve maintenance of data. Congress should consider amending USERRA to apply VBIA 2008 deadlines to state cases and add reporting requirements. The agencies generally agreed with GAO's recommendations but expressed concern over some of the matters for congressional consideration.