Government Officials Encourage Federal, Civilian Employers to Recruit Wounded Warriors
WASHINGTON (NNS) — Military and civilian officials with the Department of Defense and other federal agencies and members of private industry will discuss how to recruit wounded warriors for federal and private employment at the 2nd Annual Wounded Warrior Hiring and Support Conference, scheduled for Nov. 9-10.
Navy commands like Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) have led this effort, hiring more than 700 wounded warriors in the last two years, according to Cmdr. Dave McAfee, NAVSEA wounded warrior program director.
“Believe it or not, it’s easier than you would think to get connected to wounded warriors,” McAfee said. “All the time private industries, companies, come up to me and say ‘We want to hire wounded warriors, we know it’s the right thing to do, we just don’t know how to get connected.’ And so it turns out it’s not so hard.”
McAfee said each military branch has support in place a liaison command responsible for non-medical care for their wounded warriors, including Navy Safe Harbor for Sailors and Coast Guardsmen and the Wounded Warrior Regiment for Marines. He added these organizations, and others like the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, maintain close relationships with each wounded warrior under their care and are a large part of why NAVSEA has been successful in hiring so many.
“They are so mature, they’ve been through so much, that if any employer engages in a dialogue with them, they will see that these wounded warriors are smart, they’re tough, and they won’t quit,” McAfee said. “We’ve had wounded warriors who have been blown up in the desert, and after we’ve hired them as civilians, they literally have volunteered to go back on many tours as civilians in the desert to help their fellow service members. So the wounded warriors absolutely don’t quit as a group and any employer would benefit so greatly by hiring them.”
McAfee recommended employers attend November’s conference to meet potential employees and learn about the hiring process so they can consider wounded warriors to meet their workforce needs.
“They will know how to hire them, how to train, how to support them, how to retain them in the workforce,” McAfee said. “They’ll be connected to the wounded warrior support groups, and for federal agencies, the hiring authorities, so they could have resumes flowing before they even leave the conference.
“So we would highly encourage any and all employers, leaders in their organization, anyone in the organization with a passion to hire and support wounded warriors. We really want them to come to this conference and it’ll be worth their time. It’s the right thing to do for the nation, because they’ve served the nation. And even more important for them, they’re going to get great wounded warriors in their workforce.”
NAVSEA will host the conference, scheduled to take place at the Sheraton Premiere in Vienna, Va., and sponsored by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower Reserve Affairs, Department of the Navy.
To register or learn more about the conference, visit http://www.public.navy.mil/donaa/Pages/woundedwarrior.aspx.
For service-disabled veterans interested in employment opportunities at NAVSEA, and other government agencies interested in supporting NAVSEA’s wounded warrior hiring office, contact Cmdr. David McAfee at david.r.mcafee@navy.mil or (202) 781-1364.
For more news, visit www.navy.mil.
Article source: http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=63564
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