Photo By Sgt. Crystal Reidy | Army Spc. Edgar Rios greets retired Army Staff Sgt. Rosendo Ramirez at the Arizona...... read more read more
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PHOENIX - From privates fresh from basic training to reviewing a general’s resume, the Arizona National Guard employment resource center is open to all military members and their families.
Since 2011, more than 2,500 service members, veterans and their families received assistance from the ERC. They hosted over 20 hiring events, taught over 50 job seeking classes, and partnered with over 500 valley employers.
“The ERC assisted me in many ways. I appreciate the positive attitude of the staff and their willingness to assist all military personnel, retirees, veterans, and their family members to help them find employment,” said retired Army Staff Sgt. Rosendo Ramirez.
When a new customer visits the ERC they immediately sit with a counselor for an informal discussion and resume review. The help may come from a Soldier working on special orders or a civilian from the Arizona Coalition of Military Families.
“We ask a lot of questions to gather details as to what their qualifications are and what they are interested in so we can meet their employment needs,” said Army Spc. Ciara Laboy, Alpha company, 422nd exceptional signal battalion, 1120th Transportation Battalion.
“We also ask if they are in need of other services like housing assistance, counseling or family assistance,” Laboy said. The ERC specialist can do an overall assessment of their needs.
For the resume review they collect activities, volunteer work, and military experience and advise how to incorporate that information into a resume.
“We also provide recommendations on what employers are looking for including formatting, grammar, and language transition from military jargon,” Laboy said.
For example, the term “squad leader” doesn’t mean much to a civilian. The term is translated to show the Soldier has actually supervised or managed people, she said.
“The office also conducts mock interviews so the applicant feels prepared and confident,” Laboy said. “Sometimes its confidence that can get you the job so practice helps.”
New customers sign into the National Guard Employment Network; this allows employers to contact the service member directly. Also, a networking specialist will reach out to specific employers based on the service member’s resume.
“We are not a staffing agency, we just want to provide the tools for veterans and service members to represent themselves in positive light and we want to help them achieve that confidence,” Laboy said.
Employers often reach out and want to specifically hire veterans. The ERC connects them with people who have used their services.
“Employers like hiring Soldiers because they are trainable, punctual, task oriented and are able to be cross-trained,” Laboy said.
“The ERC Staff assisted me with the immediate construction of my resume and cover sheet, allowed me to use their computers, take online training classes, and make copies of the documents that I needed to sign and return to the company that eventually hired me,” Ramirez said.
“I would recommend the ERC in a heartbeat. The staff is very professional, very well trained, and gives the best customer service care they possibly can – and it’s free.”
Veterans, service members and family members can visit the ERC at the Personnel Readiness Center, 1335 N. 52nd Street in Phoenix, call 602-267-2534 for an appointment, or email employment@Arizonacoalition.org.
| Date Taken: | 06.03.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 06.03.2014 17:49 |
| Story ID: | 131964 |
| Location: | PHOENIX, AZ, US |
| Web Views: | 464 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
This work, Arizona Guard helps Citizen-Soldiers, families find jobs, by SGT Crystal Reidy, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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