kaputt

So this question is going to be specifically related to more entry level positions in aviation: aerial survey, pipeline, part 135 SIC positions, etc... I know that the Part 121 airlines are much more friendly with military reserve duty.

My background is I am a CFI at a small school and not getting many hours, so I've been looking at other opportunities. I am also a reservist serving in an IMA position, so not your typical one weekend a month two weeks a year. My previous IMA schedule was I did all of my IDTs and active duty period at once in about 3 weeks, but I just transitioned to a new role and have not set a new schedule with my new unit.

My question is, should I be putting that I am a reservist on my resume/application for these entry level positions? There is no law that says I have to disclose I am a reservist and the USERRA protections have a difficult time actually covering you during an application process since a company could just say you weren't a competitive candidate, even if they really threw your app out over schedule concerns with your reserve duty.

I don't really want to be the guy that gets a job and then has to drop the reserve bomb after getting hired, but I also don't want to miss out on opportunities simply because I have that I am reservist on my resume. The beautiful thing about IMA is that its flexibility actually can make schedule disruptions significantly less for your civilian job, but explaining that to companies, especially before you've been hired, seems like it could be difficult.

Excargodog

Don’t lie on your application and don’t volunteer anything they don’t ask for that you think might be detrimental. They are not supposed to hold Reserve status against you - by law - but proving it if you are discriminated against can be difficult as an individual. But making them ask - even if they do discriminate - at least puts you in a big enough group that proving such discrimination is now possible.

kaputt

Appreciate the response. Makes senses, and yeah I have zero intention of lying. Most of the applications I have looked at have basic legal questions like “are you a veteran?”, “we’re you discharged from active duty in the last year?”, etc... but none specifically ask if I am a current reservist. My reserve job also has absolutely nothing to do with aviation so to some extent it feels like it could do more harm than good on the resume. But on the flip side I don’t know what the ramifications would be for getting hired, accepting the job, and then letting them know I’m also a reservist and will have to do my IMA “drills” at some future date down the road.

rickair7777

They ask about current and past employers. You can argue that since they're not allowed to ask about reserve participation, that you don't have to answer that one but it seems like thin ice... ALL of the big airlines want your entire mil history, active and reserve, in excruciating detail so I guess they can ask about the past (including last DWE), but just can't ask about future intentions.

But practically speaking...

You do NOT want to get on with a small aviation operator and then surprise them with a bunch of reserve duty... or really any reserve duty that conflicts with their needs. Reality in 91/135 is that they're usually not big enough to staff to cover for much or any mil drop. If you go there, they'll probably just find some other reason to can you and then you have that on your record. Is what it is, usually not worth fighting that battle with Mom & Pop. There are outfits that are fine with it but that's probably more high-end biz jets. Best to be totally up front about exactly what your mil schedule will look like... not getting the job is better than getting fired or being in a toxic situation.

kaputt

Makes sense. It sucks that’s the way it is I guess, but I know some of my reservist friends that work in non aviation industries deal with this even worse and it lasts their whole career. At least in aviation you can get to a 121 airline and have a lot more flexibility.

I’ll just continue to be upfront about it and hope for the best.

rickair7777

Unless you work for a bottom-feeder regional, airlines is about the best gig for reservists (part of the reason I left white collar).