Eighteen months in, we now employ more than 17,500 veterans and military spouses across Amazon. And we expect to hire an additional 10,000 more by 2021. We've found that veterans flourish at Amazon.
Their mission-driven, results-oriented approach make them a great fit in roles across our corporate offices and operations network. In our operations network – where associates pick, pack, and ship customer orders across 75 North America fulfillment centers – we are proud that more than 10,000 veterans have chosen Amazon for their next call of duty. And to ensure we’re meeting military spouses where they are, we’ve expanded our Virtual Customer Services (VCS) roles, which enable employees to work from their homes and take their jobs with them if they relocate. In 2017, we’ve extended more than 2,000 VCS offers to veterans and military spouses, who are often located near military bases or are required to frequently transfer to different locations.
When asked about the transition from the armed services to civilian life, our military employees overwhelmingly described how their military experience translates into tangible and valuable skills.
When asked about the transition from the armed services to civilian life, our military employees overwhelmingly described how their military experience translates into tangible and valuable skills.This is one of the many reasons why military talent chooses to work at Amazon: we recognize the leadership skills and problem-solving abilities veterans and military spouses bring. In addition, we provide job stability, and a path to continuous career development through programs like Career Choice.
In honor of Veterans Day, Amazon held events across the country.
In nine fulfillment centers, Amazon leaders held celebratory meals throughout the month of November. Events included Color Guard presentations by local Armed Forces and Reserve Officers' Training Corps, remarks from fulfillment center general managers, and over $86,000 in donations to non-profit organizations across the U.S. addressing critical needs for local veterans, including:
- American Legion - Campbellsville
- Arizona Veterans Standdown Alliance
- Disabled American Veterans Charities of San Joaquin County
- Operation: Military Matters
- South Carolina Chapter of the American Gold Star Mothers
- Tampa Crossroads
- Team Red, White and Blue - Joliet
- Team Red, White and Blue - Louisville
- Team Red, White and Blue - Reno
- Tech4Vets
- Travis Manion Foundation
- Tristate Veterans Community Alliance
- USO Las Vegas
We also held events across the country in recognition of veterans and to discuss the innovative hiring programs we’ve created for veterans and military spouses.
Dallas, Texas
Amazon and the George W. Bush Institute brought together tech innovators, policymakers from Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, and veteran-owned businesses for a half-day policy conversation on employing and retaining veterans.
Herndon, Virginia
U.S. Congresswoman Barbara Comstock joined Amazon Vice President Ardine Williams in celebrating our Herndon cohort of Amazon Web Services veteran apprentices. This group of apprentices, who represented all branches of the military, just completed the classroom portion of the apprenticeship and will soon begin on-the-job training at Amazon in cloud computing.
Chicago, Illinois
Amazon Director of Talent Acquisition Kathleen Carroll joined Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, local military and policy leaders, and veteran-owned businesses in our Chicago corporate office. The event focused on efforts to employ, retain, and empower veterans and military spouses.
Seattle, Washington
At our Seattle Headquarters, the affinity group Warriors@ Amazon group celebrated Veterans Day with a visit from Major General Burleson. The event also featured a panel with the two-star general and Amazonians Theresa Lepow, Dave Uselman, Tim Bomke, and Brian Sollom. Representatives from several veteran service organizations joined the Warriors@Amazon for a celebratory networking event later in the day.
To all of our associate veterans and military spouses, thank you for your service and thank you for making history every day for Amazon customers.
