Lt. Col. Mike Hert sues Aurora for wrongful termination for deployment, seeks $1M

A decorated military veteran from Oshkosh accuses Aurora Health Care of illegally firing him in violation of a federal law designed to protect National Guard members from losing their jobs and benefits while performing military service.
In a federal lawsuit filed in the United States District Court last week, U.S. Army Reserve Lt. Col. Mike Hert claims Aurora violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act when it terminated him in January. He seeks at least $1 million in damages.
Hert, who has served in the U.S. Army and Army Reserve for 27 years, claims the issues arose after he returned from a yearlong tour of duty in Djibouti in September 2010. He is presently attached to the Army’s 308th Civil Affairs Brigade, but has previously served tours in Iraq in 2004 and 2008.
“I didn’t think I’d lose my job over (my military service,)” Hert said. “When you look at my history with Aurora in the Oshkosh community, I was one of the original company guys here in town. This just makes me realize that if this could happen to me, this could happen to any service member.”
Aurora, the Milwaukee-based health care company that owns and operates 15 hospitals in Wisconsin, including Oshkosh, issued the following statement Saturday from Senior Counsel Jane E. Appleby:
“Aurora Hea Continued