Acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank Announces New Monster.com Collaboration with Joining Forces Initiative

Acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank Announces New Monster.com Collaboration with Joining Forces Initiative

The following press release was published by the U.S. Department of Commerce on Dec. 12, 2012. It is reproduced in full below.

Joining Forces seeks to connect America’s veterans and military spouses with careers that match their skills and experience Acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank and Capt. Todd Veazie, Executive Director of First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden’s Joining Forces initiative, participated today in the National Veteran Employment Summit hosted by Monster and Military.com. At the event, Acting Secretary Blank announced that Monster.com is collaborating with Joining Forces, which means the company will contribute to the initiative’s goal of hiring or training an additional 250,000 veterans and military spouses by the end of 2014.

During the summit, human resource leaders from the public and private sector engaged with veterans, senior military and government officials, and respected non-profit leaders about the most effective ways to prepare, support, and connect veterans with employers. The event also included networking opportunities.

“All of us at the Commerce Department and throughout the Administration have made hiring veterans a priority,” said Acting Secretary Blank. “Whether it’s by making improvements in how the military transitions service members from the battlefield to the workplace, ensuring the post-9/11 GI Bill stays strong, or through the efforts of the Joining Forces initiative, President Obama and this Administration are taking steps to ensure that veterans can find job opportunities when they return from service. We are proud to support the efforts of the private sector – and companies like Monster and Military.com – in hiring the men and women who have bravely served this nation.” Joining Forces is a comprehensive national initiative led by First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden to provide U.S. service members and their families with the opportunities and support they have earned. One of the effort’s main focuses has been connecting America’s veterans and military spouses with careers that match their skills, experience and dedication. To date, Joining Forces has worked with more than 2,000 companies to hire or train 125,000 veterans and military spouses.

“Through Joining Forces we’re working to show military families that they live in a grateful nation,” said Capt. Todd Veazie, Executive Director of First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden’s Joining Forces initiative. “Over the past year we’ve asked Americans to step up and show their support. Everyone we’ve met has exceeded our expectations not only by making commitments but also by raising their goals even higher. I saw that same energy today from Monster and Military.com, companies that are dedicated to helping military families connect with jobs and training opportunities. We’re eager to continue working together in the months and years ahead.” With a local presence in more than 40 countries, Monster connects employers with quality job seekers at all levels, provides personalized career advice to consumers globally and delivers vast, highly targeted audiences to advertisers. The Military Skills Translator, Veteran Virtual Career Fairs, Veterans Talent Index and today’s Veterans Employment Summit are indicative of Monster’s commitment to serving the full spectrum of veteran employment needs. The company provides employers with tools that help them attract veteran talent on a regular basis, including veteran friendly job postings, veteran power resume search tools and access to the Military Career Ad Network.

“We were honored to bring together human resource leaders from the private and public sectors, veterans, senior military and government officials and respected non-profit leaders to participate in today’s Veterans Employment Summit here in Washington,” said Sal Iannuzzi, Chairman, President and CEO for Monster. “Throughout the day, these leaders addressed what programs and best practices their organizations are doing to prepare, support and connect veterans. Teaming with the Joining Forces initiative furthers Monster’s commitment to help connect Veterans to those employers who want to hire them.” Military.com, a business unit of Monster Worldwide, Inc., is the nation's largest online military destination serving over ten million members, including active duty personnel, reservists, guard members, retirees, veterans, family members, defense workers and those considering military careers.

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce

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