Working together to employ America

David J. Lemaire, a program support manager in Louisiana for EPI watches as Ted Daywalt signs the memorandum of agreement at the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 61st Annual Conference and Exposition in New Orleans Monday.


By 1st Lt. Olivia Cobiskey
EPI Director of Marketing – Media

NEW ORLEANS - The Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative staff hit the ground running Monday.

Before the conference even opened Ted Daywalt, CEO and President of VetJobs, signed a memorandum of agreement to "maintain a deep commitment to hiring and supporting the brave men and women who protect and defend American," at the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 61st Annual Conference and Exposition in New Orleans.

"The beauty of the EPI program is it emphasizes to the employer the importance of hiring member of the Reserve and National Guard," Daywalt said.

This philosophy is inline with VetJobs, which also offers resources to help veterans find employment with military friendly companies.

Not an easy task today, said Daywalt, who testified for the Commission on the National Guard and Reserve in May.

Daywalt said three surveys by Business & Legal Reports, the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM), and Workforce Management reveal that support for employees who are active in the National Guard and Reserve by employers is declining.

The is particularly reveling of the workforce survey, in which companies were asked if they had employees deployed in Iraq and if it was a hardship to their business. Of the 335 executive and human resource managers who answered 67 percent answered yes, said Daywalt.

The companies where also asked if they knew that a military Reserve or Guard Soldier could be called up and taken away from their job for an indeterminate amount of time, would you still hire a Citizen-Soldier, 54 percent answered no.

Daywalt told the commission, that returning members of the National Guard and Reserve are increasingly finding it difficult to obtain meaningful employment equal to their education and experience due to a perceived and real bias by employers who are concerned about the uncertainty of the time their employee would be needed during a potential mobilization.

"The U.S. Army Reserve and Guard system will not work if we do not have employer support," Daywalt said.

The EPI program was created to open a direct line of communication to employers to mitigate that strain. More than 400 employers have signed memorandums of agreement with the Army Reserve including Wal-Mart, IBM, Schneider National, Inc., General Electric and Sears Holding.

"EPI establishes a means by which the Army Reserve and employers can share personnel and collaborate on human resource issues and ideas," said Lt. Col. Kris Carle, an Outreach STRATCOM Officer with Army Reserve Communication, in her booth at the Convention Center Monday. "It creates a mechanism through which employers can raise with the Army Reserve concerns and issues associated with deployments and training and collaboratively resolve them."

Several other companies also signed Monday:

American Hospital Service Group (AHSG)
Illen Products Ltd.
Rehorn Professional Groups Inc.

National Guard and Reserve Mobilized as of April 28, 2009

Army National Guard and Army Reserve - 103,709
Navy Reserve - 6,750
Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve - 14,892
Marine Corps Reserve - 7,575
Coast Guard Reserve - 697

This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 133,623, including both units and individual augmentees.

A cumulative roster of all National Guard and Reserve personnel who are currently activated can be found here.

U.S. Army Reserve Partnership Perfect for Louisiana City

Slidell Mayor Ben O. Morris signed a agreeement with the U.S. Army Reserve Feb. 23 while U.S. Army Reserve Col. James Lee commander, 377th Sustainment Command, and Dave Lemaire, Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative Program Support Manager watch.

SLIDELL, La. - The City of Slidell joined forces with the U.S. Army Reserve Feb. 23 to take advantage of the Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative, a unique program which offers businesses tangible incentives to hire Army Reserve soldiers.

"The United States Army has invested a tremendous amount of time and money training these individuals in a variety of skills," said U.S. Army Reserve Col. James Lee, who met with Slidell Mayor Ben Morris, EPI's National Program Manager Johnny H. Dwiggins and Program Support Manager David Lemaire to formalize the city's participation agreement. "Now we just need to find places these soldiers can utilize these skills."

Since the Employer Partnership's launch in April 2008, cities across America have taken advantage of the program, employing Army Reserve soldiers as accountants, human resources managers, medical professionals, city planners, attorneys, transportation specialists, teachers, law enforcement officers, engineers, communication network experts, and more.

Joining the program is free and saves companies and cities money, Dwiggins said. To post a job on a commerical site for 30 days can cost from $99 to $385. If the employer uses a private placement company it can cost 20 to 30 percent of the employees salary or $25,000 for a $100,000 position.

It also saves partners in traning and health care costs.

The potential employees have already completed occupational specialty instruction through the Army Reserve, the City of Slidell will save money normally associated with on-the-job training, he added. Additionally, because Army Reserve soldiers must be healthy, physically fit and drug free to remain in the Army Reserve, the new employees will be, on average, healthier than the general population.

"So many of these soldiers complete their training and are ready to enter the workforce, but they don't have the means to find the employers who need someone with their skills," Dwiggins said. "The Employer Partnership Initiative makes it easy for the two to find each other."

Morris is confident that the partnership will enable the city to fill some of its vacant positions.

"This is a program that makes good business sense," said Morris, as he signed the paperwork. "The city is honored to be part of it."

Among those that joined the mayor in signing were Alex Gonzales, Sr. and Alex Gonzales, Jr. of Alex's Body Shop, Tye Tycer of Mount Tycer and Gerard Clade and Red Childers of MEW shuttle service.

After the signing ceremony, Lee presented Staff Sgt. Shane Leake a Certificate of Appreciation for setting up new computers purchased to support the Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative.

"Staff Sgt. Leake is a prime example of the many men and women whose services are available through the Reserve Employer Partnership," Lee said. "He's an outstanding Internet Technology Specialist. If I were a business, I'd leap at the opportunity to hire him."

Businesses interested in learning more about the program should contact Lemaire (985)649-7011 or 1-888-649-7011.