Nebraska § 48-238 - Veterans or spouses; preference in private employment; policy; notice to Commissioner of Labor; registry.

§ 48-238. Veterans or spouses; preference in private employment; policy; notice to Commissioner of Labor; registry.

(1) For purposes of this section:

(a) Preference eligible means any veteran as defined in this section or the spouse of a servicemember as defined in this section, except that for a spouse of a servicemember such preference is limited to the time during which the servicemember remains on active status and up to one hundred eighty days after the servicemember's discharge or separation from service;

(b) Private employer means a sole proprietorship, a corporation, a partnership, an association, a limited liability company, or any other entity with one or more employees;

(c) Servicemember means a person who serves in the armed forces of the United States;

(d) Veteran means (i) a person who served full-time duty with military pay and allowances in the armed forces of the United States, except for training or for determining physical fitness, and was discharged or otherwise separated with a characterization of honorable or general (under honorable conditions), or (ii) the spouse of a veteran who (A) has a one hundred percent permanent disability as determined by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or (B) was killed in the line of duty or died due to his or her military service; and

(e) Voluntary veterans preference employment policy means a private employer's voluntary preference for hiring and promoting a preference eligible over another equally qualified applicant or employee.

(2) A private employer may adopt a voluntary veterans preference employment policy. Such policy shall be in writing and applied uniformly to decisions regarding hiring and promotion.

(3) If a private employer offers a voluntary veterans preference employment policy:

(a) A veteran desiring to use such policy shall provide the private employer with a copy of the veteran's Department of Defense Form 214, also known as the DD Form 214, or its successor form or record;

(b) A spouse of a veteran desiring to use such policy shall provide the private employer with a copy of the veteran's Department of Defense Form 214 or its successor form or record, proof of marriage to the veteran, and (i) a copy of the veteran's disability verification from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs demonstrating a one hundred percent permanent disability rating, (ii) a copy of the veteran's Department of Defense Form 1300 or its successor form documenting that the veteran was killed in the line of duty, or (iii) other documentation showing that the veteran died due to his or her military service; and

(c) A spouse of a servicemember desiring to use such policy shall provide the private employer with proof of the servicemember's active status and proof of marriage to the servicemember.

(4) If a private employer implements a voluntary veterans preference employment policy, it shall notify the Commissioner of Labor of such policy. The commissioner shall use the information to maintain a registry of the private employers that have a voluntary veterans preference employment policy in Nebraska.

(5) A voluntary veterans preference employment policy shall not be considered a violation of any state or local equal employment opportunity law including the Nebraska Fair Employment Practice Act.