Walmart today announced the hiring of nearly 6,000 military spouses since launching the Military Spouse Career Connection (MSCC) on Veterans Day 2018. In its sixth month, the MSCC gives hiring preference to military spouses who seek employment with Walmart or Sam’s Club.
This announcement comes at a time when more than 75 percent of our nation’s 500,000 military spouses want or need work, according to theDepartment of Defense Military Spouse Employment Partnership. The MSCC serves as a natural step for Walmart, as the company’s Military Family Promise, now in its ninth year, also guarantees a job at a nearby store or club for all military personnel and military spouses employed by the company who move to a different part of the country as part of their military service.
“Military spouses are a diverse, adaptable, educated and team-oriented group of men and women,” said Retired Brig. Gen. Gary Profit, senior director of military programs for Walmart. “They have many of the same skills that veterans have, which makes them highly desirable job candidates. It’s our honor to offer them opportunities here at Walmart and beyond.”
“As a military wife, I feel like I served alongside my husband in a lot of ways,” said Katie Tidmore, Walmart associate and first hire through the Military Spouse Career Connection. “It was always so hard to find steady or consistent work. I’m grateful to Walmart for such a wonderful program.”
Beyond today’s announcement of the first hiring numbers for the MSCC, the Walmart Foundation awarded a $1 million grant to Hire Heroes USA to support the expansion of their employment programs and improve data collection and reporting. Notably, a portion of the funding will support a program manager for Hire Heroes’ Serving Spouses, a career coaching program tailored specifically for military spouses who face unique barriers to employment such as frequent moves, childcare challenges while a spouse is deployed, and having to re-obtain certifications that don’t transfer from state to state.
“We are grateful for the Walmart Foundation’s continued, generous support of Hire Heroes USA. This investment will help us continue our world-class program delivery for veterans and military spouses who face unique challenges in the civilian job search. Further, the grant will help us conduct critical data collection and analysis that will inform the entire veteran service community,” said Christopher Plamp, chief executive officer of Hire Heroes USA. “Through our partnership with Walmart, we will continue to strengthen military families and improve the lives of the men and women who have served our country.”
May also marks the sixth anniversary of Walmart’s Veterans Welcome Home Commitment (VWHC) which guarantees a job offer to any eligible, honorably discharged U.S. veterans who separated from active duty since the inception of the VWHC on Memorial Day 2013. To date, 226,637 have been hired and 35,383 have been promoted to roles with higher pay and greater responsibility at Walmart and Sam’s Club. The commitment recognizes the important skills and leadership abilities veterans bring to the civilian 2 workforce, and helps veterans ease the often-difficult transition from active duty to civilian life. Walmart is now more than 90 percent of the way to reaching its goal of hiring 250,000 veterans by 2020.
For more information about Walmart’s commitment to veterans, service members and military families, please visit: http://www.walmartcareerswithamission.com/ and follow Walmart on Twitter @WalmartInc and @WalmartOrg
*Editor’s Note: These projections and reported hires/promotions include veterans hired under our original and expanded Commitment as well as other veterans hired by Walmart in this time frame. While we think it is particularly important to support soldiers as they make the transition to civilian life, Walmart believes all veterans deserve our respect and support, no matter when they left active duty.
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Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, over 275 million customers and members visit our more than 11,300 stores under 58 banners in 27 countries and eCommerce websites. With fiscal year 2019 revenue of $514.4 billion, Walmart employs over 2.2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart.
About Philanthropy at Walmart
Walmart.org represents the philanthropic efforts of Walmart and the Walmart Foundation. By leaning in where our business has unique strengths, we work to tackle key social issues and collaborate with others to spark long-lasting systemic change. Walmart has stores in 27 countries, employing more than 2 million associates and doing business with thousands of suppliers who, in turn, employ millions of people. Walmart.org is helping people live better by supporting programs that work to accelerate upward job mobility for frontline workers, address hunger and make healthier, more sustainably-grown food a reality, and build strong communities where Walmart operates. To learn more, visit www.walmart.org or find us on Twitter @walmartorg.
About Hire Heroes USA
Hire Heroes USA is a veteran service organization dedicated to empowering US military members, veterans, and their spouses as they seek civilian employment. Services include one-on-one coaching, professionally revised resumes, mentoring, workshops, a job board, career fairs and more. Hire Heroes USA is funded exclusively through public donations and private grants, allowing services to be provided at no cost to clients. Hire Heroes USA has earned a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and also holds the GuideStar Platinum Seal of Transparency. For more information about our mission, services and how to get involved, please visit hireheroesusa.org and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.