When Americans who serve in the reserves are called to active duty, they leave their jobs, homes and families behind to fight on behalf of all Americans. As a result of their selfless sacrifice, their families should not be forced to make due with less since their active duty military salary is often less than their civilian wages. Being called to duty should not result in a pay cut.

I support giving these reservists the well-deserved difference between their federal civilian salary and their active duty military salary. Many companies such as American Express, Bank of America, Ford, Lockheed Martin, Morgan Stanley, Northwest Airlines, and Sprint provide this benefit, as do the states of Florida and Illinois.

The federal government should do the same for its civilian employees so their families can remain financially secure during a mobilization.