Companies Commit to Jobs for Military Veterans

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.