14 DAY TRIAL // Concomitantly with the celebration of the one-year anniversary of its Elevate America program, Microsoft has introduced a new initiative designed to make it easier for US soldiers to return to civilian life. The Elevate America’s Veterans Initiative is designed to spark a collaboration between members of the private sector, but also veteran groups, workforce agencies, non-profit organizations and even community colleges in order to help former US soldiers and their spouses get new jobs. Essential to this endeavor is the need for technology training and certification, key to the 21st-century workplace, Pamela Passman, corporate vice president of Microsoft Global Corporate Affairs, reveals.
“Our servicemen and women are amazing leaders, but to be able to compete in the tough job market when they return from duty, many of them need access to technology training,” Passman adds. “We are bringing together organizations and companies that can combine their competencies and resources with ours to make the greatest possible impact to help veterans and their spouses.”
At the annual conference of the National Association of Workforce Boards in Washington, D.C., Passman announced that, on top of creating the Elevate America’s Veterans Initiative and inviting public, private and non-profit organizations to join, Microsoft was also committing $8 million to the efforts necessary to help veterans adapt to the economy of the present time. According to Passman, Microsoft pledged $2 million in cash and up to $6 million in software to support the program for the next two years. The company also announced that the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America was the first organization to join the newly created coalition.
“The men and women who were fighting for our country are now fighting for jobs,” Akhtar Badshah, senior director of Community Affairs for Microsoft, adds. “We believe that when we provide them with IT training and IT certification, both for themselves and their spouses, many of them will have a better opportunity to get reintegrated back into the civilian work force as the economy begins to recover.”
Statistics offered by the software giant reveal that there are approximately 185,000 unemployed Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans in the US at this time.