Do we have to pay military reservists?

Under our policy we pay employees the difference between military reservist pay and the employee's regular pay. A reservist says this is discriminatory because we don't do this for people on jury duty (We also continue their pay). I contend we do not collect money from jurors for two reasons: first, that is it is minimal and secondly, it is for expenses, not for services rendered.

Rita Risser's response:

Under federal law, you are not required to pay military reservists or jurors anything. You are only required to give reservists time off, with their jobs guaranteed upon their return from duty. I am not aware of any state laws requiring you to make such payments, although you may want to check with your state chamber of commerce or a local attorney.

Any time you treat two groups differently, you should justify the inconsistent treatment by having a legitimate business reason. The reasons you state for the different treatment of jurors sound legitimate to me.

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