Michael Mills alleged that his time-off requests for weekend National Guard duty were met with hostility from his employer, Earthgrains Baking Co. And when his Guard duty became mandatory after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the company allegedly threatened him to get out of the duty “or else.” Eventually Mills was fired following a two-week leave for Guard duty. Earthgrains claimed Mills was terminated for misconduct involving a customer. But according to a federal court, Mills presented sufficient evidence to suggest that the termination was influenced by the company’s attitude about his Guard duty.