The Top 10 Best Employers for Reservists

N E W  Y O R K, March 31 -- Almost 200,000 members of the U.S. National Guard and other military reserves already have been called to serve during the current conflict with Iraq. Not only must these men and women face wartime duty, they also must leave their careers on hiatus and fret over their family finances.

While the reservists are paid by the military, they often receive far less than they were earning in civilian life. Reservists' pensions are legally protected; beyond that, much is up to the employer. Some are more generous than others.

To identify the best companies for U.S. reservists to work for, we turned to the Reserve Officers Association. Each year the ROA publishes a survey listing the benefits paid out by some of the largest companies in America. We ranked the 154 companies that responded to the ROA survey, using a combination of pay and benefits.

To be fair, many companies have recently changed their policies — changes that were not reflected in the ROA's snapshot. One thing was clear: Schering-Plough stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of generosity.

For more, go to Forbes.com..