{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-44-44-4303","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 44, § 44-4303","heading":"Definitions","body":"As used in the Oklahoma Uniformed Services Employment and\n\nReemployment Rights Act:\n\n1. \"Adjutant General\" shall be defined in accordance with\n\nSection 801 of Title 44 of the Oklahoma Statutes;\n\n2. \"Benefit\", \"benefit of employment\", or \"rights and benefits\"\n\nmeans the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, including\n\nany advantage, profit, privilege, gain, status, account, or\n\ninterest, including wages or salary for work performed, that accrues\n\nby reason of an employment contract or agreement or an employer\n\npolicy, plan, or practice and includes rights and benefits under a\n\npension plan, a health plan, an employee stock ownership plan,\n\ninsurance coverage, awards, bonuses, severance pay, supplemental\n\nunemployment benefits, vacations, and the opportunity to select work\n\nhours or location of employment;\n\n3. \"Commissioner of Labor\" means the Oklahoma Commissioner of\n\nLabor whose office is established in Section 1 of Article VI of the\n\nOklahoma Constitution and whose powers and duties are established\n\npursuant to Section 1 of Title 40 of the Oklahoma Statutes or any\n\nperson designated or retained by the Commissioner of Labor to carry\n\nout a responsibility of the Commissioner of Labor under the Oklahoma\n\nUniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act;\n\n4. \"District attorney\" means the executive officer established\n\npursuant to Section 215.1 of Title 19 of the Oklahoma Statutes. The\n\npowers and duties exercised by a district attorney pursuant to the\n\nOklahoma Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act,\n\nupon designation by the district attorney, may also be performed by\n\nan assistant district attorney or by a special district attorney\n\nappointed pursuant to subsection C of Section 215.37M of Title 19 of\n\nthe Oklahoma Statutes;\n\n5. \"Employee\" means any person employed by an employer.\n\nEmployee includes any person who is a citizen, national, or\n\npermanent resident alien of the United States;\n\n6. a. Except as provided in subparagraphs b and c of this\n\nparagraph, \"employer\" means any person, institution,\n\norganization, or other entity that pays salary or\n\nwages for work performed or that has control over\n\nemployment opportunities, including:\n\n(1) a person, institution, organization, or other\n\nentity to whom the employer has delegated the\n\nperformance of employment-related\n\nresponsibilities,\n\n(2) the State of Oklahoma,\n\n(3) any political subdivision within the State of\n\nOklahoma,\n\n(4) any successor in interest to a person,\n\ninstitution, organization, or other entity\n\nreferred to in this subparagraph, and\n\n(5) a person, institution, organization, or other\n\nentity that has denied initial employment in\n\nviolation of Section 7 of this act.\n\nb. Where a soldier or airman of the Oklahoma National\n\nGuard performs his or her duty as an Active Guard and\n\nReserve program participant or where a National Guard\n\ntechnician is employed under 32 U.S.C., Section 709,\n\n\"employer\" does not mean the Adjutant General.\n\nc. Where a National Guard technician is employed under 32\n\nU.S.C., Section 709, \"employer\" means the Adjutant\n\nGeneral.\n\nd. (1) Whether the term \"successor in interest\" applies\n\nwith respect to an entity described in division\n\n(4) of subparagraph a of this paragraph shall be\n\ndetermined on a case-by-case basis using a\n\nmultifactor test that considers the following\n\nfactors:\n\n(a) substantial continuity of business\n\noperations,\n\n(b) use of the same or similar facilities,\n\n(c) continuity of workforce,\n\n(d) similarity of jobs and working conditions,\n\n(e) similarity of supervisory personnel,\n\n(f) similarity of machinery, equipment, and\n\nproduction methods, and\naph shall be\n\ndetermined on a case-by-case basis using a\n\nmultifactor test that considers the following\n\nfactors:\n\n(a) substantial continuity of business\n\noperations,\n\n(b) use of the same or similar facilities,\n\n(c) continuity of workforce,\n\n(d) similarity of jobs and working conditions,\n\n(e) similarity of supervisory personnel,\n\n(f) similarity of machinery, equipment, and\n\nproduction methods, and\n\n(g) similarity of products or services.\n\n(2) The entity's lack of notice or awareness of a\n\npotential or pending claim under the Oklahoma\n\nUniformed Services Employment and Reemployment\n\nRights Act at the time of a merger, acquisition,\n\nor other form of succession shall not be\n\nconsidered when applying the multifactor test\n\nunder division (1) of this subparagraph;\n\n7. \"Health plan\" means an insurance policy or contract, medical\n\nor hospital service agreement, membership or subscription contract,\n\nor other arrangement under which health services for individuals are\n\nprovided or the expenses of such services are paid;\n\n8. \"Notice\" means any written or verbal notification of an\n\nobligation or intention to perform service in the state military\n\nforces provided to an employer by the employee who will perform such\n\nservice or by the state military force component in which the\n\nservice is to be performed;\n\n9. \"Political subdivision\" means the seventy-seven counties of\n\nthe state, incorporated municipalities, including both cities and\n\ntowns, and all public entities or instrumentalities, including, but\n\nnot limited to, municipal corporations, municipal sewer and water\n\nauthorities, public trusts and public authorities in the state which\n\nare not a state agency, an executive officer, the legislative branch\n\nor the judicial branch of the state. Political subdivisions\n\ninclude, but are not limited to, special districts, authorities and\n\ninstrumentalities such as school districts, fire protection\n\ndistricts, conservation districts, water and sewer districts,\n\nemergency medical service districts and airport and housing\n\nauthorities;\n\n10. \"Qualified\", with respect to an employment position, means\n\nhaving the ability to perform the essential tasks of the position;\n\n11. \"Reasonable efforts\", in actions required of an employer\n\nunder the Oklahoma Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment\n\nRights Act, means actions, including training, provided by an\n\nemployer which do not place an undue hardship on the employer;\n\n12. \"Secretary concerned\" means either the Secretary of the\n\nArmy or the Secretary of the Air Force as the context requires;\n\n13. \"Seniority\" means longevity in employment together with any\n\nbenefits of employment which accrue with, or are determined by,\n\nlongevity in employment;\n\n14. \"Service in the state military forces\" means the\n\nperformance of duty on a voluntary or involuntary basis in the state\n\nmilitary forces under competent authority when ordered to \"state\n\nactive duty\" or \"Title 32 active duty\" as defined in Section 801 of\n\nTitle 44 of the Oklahoma Statutes;\n\n15. \"State\" means the State of Oklahoma;\n\n16. \"State agency\" includes any executive branch agency within\n\nthe state, whether appropriated or nonappropriated, established\n\neither by the Oklahoma Constitution or by the Oklahoma Statutes,\n\nincluding the Oklahoma Military Department with respect to the state\n\nemployees employed by the Oklahoma Military Department;\n\n17. \"State government\" means any state agency, the legislative\n\nbranch of the state, and the judicial branch of the state;\n\n18. \"State military forces\" shall be defined in accordance with\n\nSection 801 of Title 44 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and\n\n19. \"Undue hardship\", in actions taken by an employer, means\n\nactions requiring significant difficulty or expense, when considered\n\nin light of:\n\na. the nature and cost of the action needed,\n\nb. the overall financial resources of the facility or\nlitary forces\" shall be defined in accordance with\n\nSection 801 of Title 44 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and\n\n19. \"Undue hardship\", in actions taken by an employer, means\n\nactions requiring significant difficulty or expense, when considered\n\nin light of:\n\na. the nature and cost of the action needed,\n\nb. the overall financial resources of the facility or\n\nfacilities involved in the provision of the action,\n\nthe number of persons employed at the facility, the\n\neffect on expenses and resources, or the impact\n\notherwise of such action upon the operation of the\n\nfacility,\n\nc. the overall financial resources of the employer; the\n\noverall size of the business of an employer with\n\nrespect to the number of its employees; or the number,\n\ntype, and location of its facilities, and\n\nd. the type of operation or operations of the employer,\n\nincluding the composition, structure, and functions of\n\nthe workforce of such employer; or the geographic\n\nseparateness, administrative, or fiscal relationship\n\nof the facility or facilities in question to the\n\nemployer.","path":["OK Code","Title 44"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os44.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"72acdc0f671d57db88e1365f1e0fad98a5ae989479cd3aea03d827c2795115e8","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-44-44-4302","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-44-44-4304"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}