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Your Job Held While You Serve — and Graduated Windows to Come Back

26 M.R.S. §811 gives a National Guard or Reserve member ordered to state or federal military duty a leave of absence AS OF RIGHT, from ANY public or private employer, and reinstatement preserving pay, seniority, benefits and status as if continuously employed. The return-to-work windows are graduated by length of service — 24 hours after three days or less, up to 90 days after a long tour. A service-related disability that prevents you doing the original job triggers placement in an equivalent one.

Verified August 27, 2026

What this benefit is

26 M.R.S. §811 gives a National Guard or Reserve member ordered to state or federal military duty a leave of absence AS OF RIGHT, from ANY public or private employer, and reinstatement preserving pay, seniority, benefits and status as if continuously employed. The return-to-work windows are graduated by length of service — 24 hours after three days or less, up to 90 days after a long tour. A service-related disability that prevents you doing the original job triggers placement in an equivalent one.

What it's worth: Leave as of right, and reinstatement as if you had never left

  • The leave is AS OF RIGHT. The employer does not choose whether to grant it.
  • It binds ANY public or private employer, with no size threshold.
  • Reinstatement preserves pay, seniority, benefits AND status as if you had been continuously employed — so the time away does not cost you progression.
  • Return-to-work windows are GRADUATED by length of service: 24 hours after service of three days or less, rising to 90 days after a long tour. Missing your window is what puts the protection at risk.
  • A SERVICE-RELATED DISABILITY that prevents you doing the original job triggers placement in an EQUIVALENT position rather than dismissal.
  • Reasonable advance notice is required, and the Adjutant General verifies the duty on request.
  • Enforcement is through the Department of Labor; the duty itself runs against the employer.

Who is entitled to it

  • You served in the U.S. armed forces.
  • You work in Maine.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

  1. 1Give your employer reasonable advance notice in writing, and keep a copy. Notice is a condition of the protection.
  2. 2Work out YOUR return window before you go: 24 hours for service of three days or less, up to 90 days for a long tour. Reporting late is the usual way this protection is lost.
  3. 3On return, expect pay, seniority, benefits and status as if you had never left. If you are offered less, that is not compliance.
  4. 4If a service-related disability stops you doing the original job, ask for placement in an equivalent position — the statute provides for it.
  5. 5The Adjutant General will verify your duty to the employer on request, which settles most disputes.
  6. 6If the employer refuses, the Department of Labor enforces it.
Form
Notice to your employer
File with
Your employer, with the Department of Labor behind it
No renewal
Once granted it does not need renewing.

Sources

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.