Joining Forces Archives

Tech Companies Set High Veteran Hiring Expectations

June 23, 2016/in Employment, Jobs, Military Spouse, Military Veteran, Veteran Employment

Matching up veterans and transitioning service members with tech jobs makes sense, since many of those who have served have already utilized tech-related skills.

To that end, tech giants like Dell, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and EMC pledged to hire 1,000 to 3,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years. Additionally, GoDaddy and Seagate Technology have pledged to hire 200 to 500 veterans.

Joining Forces, the national employment and career development initiative launched by First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden now has five years of success. The program has resulted in 1.2 million veterans and military spouses receiving jobs and training.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, whose company pledged to make 25,000 veteran and military spouse hires said, “”We’re constantly looking for leaders who can invent, think big, have a bias for action, and who want to deliver for customers.” Bezos added, “Well, those principles look very familiar to the men and women who served our country in the armed forces. And also their spouses. These guys work hard and have lots of skills.”

SpaceX has a solid reputation when it comes to employing members of the military, and has been named one of the 10 best companies for veterans in the country. The company boasts a high percentage of recent hires who were veterans, as well as a 95% retention rate among hired former service members.

This talent pool has also worked in the most challenging and stressful environments imaginable.

At MilitaryConnection.com, we offer a multitude of resources for veterans and military spouses who are seeking employment, including our Virtual Job Fair and our Job Board. We also spread the word to employers about the tax credits available to employers who hire veterans.

We salute and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve, and their families.

Companies Commit to Jobs for Military Veterans

May 29, 2016/in Employment, Government, Military, Military News, Military Spouse, Military Veteran, Veteran Employment

By Debbie Gregory.

Joining Forces, created in 2011 by first lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, has resulted in jobs for military veterans, hiring/training more than 1.2 million veterans and military spouses.

Now, 40 companies pledged more than 110,000 jobs for military veterans and military spouses over the next five years, and more committed to training them.

Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon has committed to hiring 25,000 veterans and military spouses in the next five years, training 10,000 veterans and spouses in cloud computing.

“We’re constantly looking for leaders who can invent, think big, have a bias for action, and who want to deliver for customers,” Bezos said. “Those principles look very familiar to the men and women who served our country in the armed forces. And also their spouses.”

The aerospace-defense sector pledged to hire a combined total of 30,000 veterans, and the telecommunications sector committed to hiring a combined total of 25,000.

“They made these commitments because time and again they saw for themselves that our veterans and military spouses are simply the best employees around,” Mrs. Obama said, reinforcing that these companies are doing the right thing.

As far as hiring for high tech jobs for veterans, she added, “If they can set up wireless networks in Baghdad or do satellite reconnaissance in the mountains of Afghanistan, I’m pretty confident that they can handle whatever’s happening in Silicon Valley.”

Mrs. Obama also stressed that she hoped the next administration would continue to make hiring veterans and military spouses a national priority

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve, and their families.

Military Connection: Joining Forces Initiative Efforts Continue

May 7, 2015/in Military Veteran

First Lady Michelle Obama Speaking at Joining Forces Event

By Debbie Gregory.

In April, the Joining Forces initiative, launched by Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, announced that a number of companies in the industries of energy and technology have committed to train or hire 90,000 Veterans and military spouses within the next five years.

Joining Forces is celebrating its fourth year of assisting service members, Veterans, and their families and support them through wellness, education, and employment opportunities. The initiative began in 2011, at a time when the Veteran unemployment rate was at 12 %. Shortly after the initiative was launched, President Obama also challenged the private sector to hire 100,000 Veterans and military spouses.

Just four years later, more than 850,000 Veterans and military spouses have been hired or trained. The federal government has also upped its own Veteran hiring initiative, with 30% of its workforce now comprised of military Veterans. As a result of these combined efforts, the total Veteran unemployment rate is at 4.5 %, with a 6.5 % unemployment rate for Veterans of the Post-9/11 era.

But the need to train and hire Veterans for their post-military careers has not diminished. That is why Joining Forces has not slacked in its commitment to service members, Veterans and military families. As proof of this, Joining Forces recently secured a pledge to hire or train 33,000 Veterans and military spouses, over the next five years, from the Solar Energy Industries Association.

The solar industry is creating new jobs at a rate ten times faster than the rest of the economy. Getting Veteran workers into that industry at such a critical time could mean sustainable careers and bright futures for the men and women who served during our nation’s longest period of war.

Joining Forces will continue to fulfill its commitment to help connect Veterans and military spouses not just to jobs, but to sustainable careers, allowing them to support their families. Joining Forces is calling on all companies, across the nation, in every industry, to do their part and continue to provide opportunities for our Veterans and military families.

Military Connection proudly serves those who serve in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard,Guard and Reserve, Veterans and their Families. We are the go to site for Veteran Employment and information on Veteran education. Militaryconnection.com provides Veterans with and Directory of Employers, a Job Board, information on the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and a blog that offers Veterans boundless information. Be sure to visit Militaryconnection.com, the go to site.