Military Spouses: The Awesome Workforce You May Be Missing

In recent years, there has been an increased focus in the human resources community on helping veterans obtain gainful employment following their service to our country. While we have made great strides, what about the spouses of service members?  Military spouses suffer unemployment at a rate four times greater than the national average (as many as 1 in 4 military spouses who seek employment are unable to find it). When unemployment rates are at a record low, employers cannot afford to overlook this largely underrepresented, and often highly skilled, population of talented and adaptable individuals. This interactive session conducted by human resources professional, employment lawyer, and United States Air Force spouse, Alice Kilborn Riethman, will help employers develop awareness surrounding the unique issues facing military spouses as well as provide attendees with take-away strategies to recruit and retain this dynamic workforce.

Learning Objectives:

• Attendees will learn about the unique barriers to employment facing military spouses, including frequent relocation, deployments and barriers to licensure.
• Attendees will gain the practical tools necessary to recruit military spouses into their organizations.
• Armed with the knowledge of the unique challenges facing military spouses, attendees will leave with take-away strategies they can implement immediately within their organizations to help retain military spouses.