The Home Depot, Inc. : DOJ : Home Depot Settles Over Its Firing Of Iraq War Veteran
05/21/2012| 04:26pm US/Eastern
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The U.S. Department of Justice said it reached a settlement with Home Depot Inc. (HD) over allegations it illegally fired Army National Guard soldier Brian Bailey.
The Justice Department's complaint accused the home-improvement retailer of willfully violating the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 when it terminated Bailey, an Iraq War veteran, in 2010 because he took too many absences to fulfill his service obligations.
Last month, a Home Depot spokesman disputed the allegations, saying Bailey was fired by his store's management based on his job performance. A company representative wasn't immediately available for comment on Monday.
As part of the settlement, Home Depot will pay Bailey $45,000 in monetary relief and make changes to its military leaves of absence policy. Additionally, the company denied all allegations made in the complaint.
The settlement also mandates Home Depot to review that policy with managers from the district where Bailey worked.
Bailey was honorably discharged before joining the California Army National Guard, the department has said. He took a job at a Flagstaff, Ariz., Home Depot store in 2007 and later became a department supervisor, the complaint said.
Home Depot's shares closed at $47.61, up 1.2%. The stock is up 13% so far this year.
-By Ben Fox Rubin, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-3108; ben.rubin@dowjones.com
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