Employers United for a Stronger America has compiled a list of assistance programs on its Web site, www.employersunited.org, that range from childcare for overloaded spouses to showing employers how to continue their benefits. The site includes information on the best HR practices for companies with employees in the Guard and the Reserve, plus examples of what some employers have done.

Employers are required by federal law to keep jobs open for workers who have been activated to military service, but many want to do more than the legal requirements, says Roger Herman, president of Employers United for a Stronger America and CEO of The Herman Group, a Greensboro, N.C.-based consulting firm.

While some employers have cut extra paid military leave benefits due to long deployments, Herman stresses that supporting employees in the Guard and Reserve makes good business sense. "It is not an expense. It is an investment," he says. "These are the types of employees companies want to keep."

Currently, about 150,000 Guard and Reserve personnel are serving on active military duty.

Best practices

The Employers United for a Stronger America's Web site has identified several benefits employers can provide to help Guard and Reserve employees. Those best practices included:

* Paid military leave: Perhaps the most prized benefit among the Guard and Reserve. "Some employers make up the difference between salaries, and some make up the difference between total pay," notes Air Force Major Rob Palmer of the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, a Defense Department agency tasked with gaining support from employers for the National Guard and Reserve. The Society for Human Resource Management reports 28% of employers offer paid military leave. Some employers, such as Sears, voluntarily pay the difference in salaries and maintain all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called-up reservist employees for up to two years.

* Child care: Employers can make a difference by covering the cost of childcare for Guard and Reserve families. Whether this support is provided through babysitters from the community, fellow employees, or commercial childcare providers will depend on family circumstances, specific needs, and available resources.

* Financial advice: The Financial Planning Association is offering advice to military families through its National Financial Planning Support Center, on the Web at www.fpanet.org/public/Military.cfm. Soldiers' families can ask a certified financial planner about any problem that concerns them, including insurance issues, Social Security, disability benefits and cash flow.

* Pet care: Unmarried members of the Guard and Reserves have pets that need care when they are away on active duty. When the troops get called up, the pet can't stay home alone. Employers have a couple of different options to provide support. One is for other employees to care for the pets in a called-up employee's absence. The other alternative is to make long-term arrangements at a kennel. In the Cincinnati area, Randy Boyer, owner of Country Lane Kennels, has put together a network of twenty kennels that will serve as a pet-care coalition for called-up troops. The foster care services are being provided at no charge for activated military. More information is available at www.countrylanepetresort.com.

Above and beyond

Employers United for a Stronger America is a nonprofit organization that helps companies provide assistance to their employees on active military duty, but there is also help available from the government.

Volunteers from Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve provide free education, consultation, and if necessary, mediation for companies with Guard and Reserve employees over employment disputes. The main task is to make sure employers and employees are aware of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, the law that states the employment rights of the Guard and Reserve. However, many employers offer benefits greater than USERRA provisions.

Palmer says that often companies call Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve to seek advice on how to craft their benefits for employees on active military duty. "When you agree to go above and beyond what the law requires, we can't tell you that if you are going to provide the difference in pay for employees that you should do it for two years instead of one year," he explains. "It's entirely voluntary, but we often share with them what other companies have done."

Employers that want to offer greater assistance to the Guard and Reserve are encouraged to sign a "Statement of Support" available at Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve's Web site at www.esgr.org. Palmers says that the number of employers that have signed the pledges has grown from 3,000 to more than 11,000 in the past four years.

Employer tips for National Guard and Reserve employees

Here are a few tips from Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve about how to handle employees in the National Guard and Reserve:

* Learn more about the role of the National Guard and Reserve.

* Get to know your employees' military commanders and supervisors. Ask them to provide you with advance notice of your employee's annual military duty schedule, and work out conflicts as early as possible, while alternative arrangements may be possible.

* Look at your personnel policies to see how they accommodate and support participation in the National Guard or Reserve. For example, do they include provisions for military leave of absence or do they ensure job opportunities and benefits equivalent to those of other employees?

* Accept that there may be occasional conflicts or concerns with your employment of citizen soldiers and their requirement to perform military duty. Seek to resolve them as soon as they arise. Discuss with your employees their service requirements before problem situations arise.

* Don't hesitate to call upon your employees' military commander or supervisor if you have a conflict.

Source: Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve

Five-star employers

The Defense Department honored 15 employers with the 2005 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award for the assistance they provide their employers who are in the National Guard and Reserve.

* Alticor Inc.
Alticor Inc., formerly Amway, has a formal military leave program and constantly communicates with its military employees when mobilized. Alticor has also donated numerous Amway products, which have been distributed to deployed units worldwide.

* Citizens Financial Group
Citizens Financial Group expanded its military leave and benefit program to include pay differential and extension of benefits for up to one year. Citizens grants up to five consecutive days of paid leave when a spouse, domestic partner or child is activated for military service. If travel is necessary, the company also pays a portion of the travel expense, up to $500.

* Eaton Corp.
Eaton continues to provide full pay and benefits to their employees who are mobilized for the duration of their service in addition to their compensation that is received from the military. The company offers a coordinator who provides assistance to families of mobilized employees. Eaton currently has approximately 110 employees on active duty in the Guard and Reserve and has had more than 425 mobilized in the past four years.

* Enterprise Rent-A-Car
Enterprise Rent-A-Car extends full salary, regardless of military compensation, and benefits for the entire length of mobilization. The company also sends care packages and helps troops maintain communications with family members back home.

* IDACORP
IDACORP pays full benefits and pay differential for the entire duration of military service. IDACORP also funds extensive family outreach programs in communities in Idaho, Washington and Oregon. This funding provides for a $250 travel voucher for over 3,000 activated National Guard members. Its HR department provides assistance to family members of mobilized employees.

* Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department pays differential and continuation of benefits for the length of mobilization. Mobilized employees also continue to receive service credit, accumulated annual vacation and tenure for the duration of their military service. All mobilized employees serving on active duty continue to receive all promotions and annual pay step advancements.

* The Louisiana Department of Public Safetyand Corrections
The Louisiana Department of Safety and Corrections developed a computerized training program that instructs corrections personnel on the fundamentals of the USERRA Law. It encourages staff to write letters to deployed employees at the time of their mobilization. The department provides full benefits and a detailed human resources program for its military employees.

* Pioneer Financial Services Inc.
Pioneer Financial Services Inc. offers salary differential and benefits for up to two years, paying bonuses in advance of mobilization to assist with financial needs, and assigning a family support coordinator for the employees' families to assist with any issues that may arise during mobilization. In certain situations, the company also pays the cell phone charges, Internet access, and video e-mail capabilities of mobilized employee and family members.

* Ryland Homes
Ryland Homes offers full benefits, including life, health and dental insurance, and pay differential for one year.

* Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Sears Roebuck, and Co. provides pay differential and continued benefits for its mobilized employees.

* South Dakota State University
South Dakota State University provides pay differential for the length of deployment and 40 hours of paid personal leave for preparation of a deployment.

* State of Delaware
The State of Delaware provides deployed service members with differential pay and health, dental and insurance benefits.

* Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.
Toyota employees who are activated National Guard and Reserve are provided pay differential, continuation of benefits, and the use or replacement of an employee special-lease vehicle for them and their families while deployed.

* USAA
USAA offers mobilized employees pay differential and continuation of benefits for up to 2 years. It has a program designed to keep deployed employees connected to their coworkers. USAA also provides its activated Guard and Reserve employees with a deployment kit that includes a comprehensive guide to assist military members with their leave of absence.

* Wachovia Corp.
Wachovia Corp. provides its employees with full salary, regardless of military compensation, and benefits for over one year or the entire length of mobilization. The company actively recruits military veterans and members of the National Guard and Reserve. - T.A.