Cooperative Living November/December 2018 - 26

YourBusiness | by Paul Wesslund, Contributing Writer
An Electric Co-op Mission: Hire Veterans
E
lectric cooperatives are working to make even better use of
a powerful source of energy - military veterans.
" Veterans, active military and their spouses are some of
our greatest assets as employees, " says Michelle Rostom, director
of workforce development for the National Rural Electric
Cooperative Association (NRECA). " They are mission-driven.
When we think about providing safe, reliable and affordable
power, we know our veterans -- whatever their job -- are
focused on making sure we are operating safely, and that we are
creating a reliable electric network for co-op members. "
Rostom spends a lot of her time getting more veterans hired by
electric co-ops in her role as program manager for NRECA's
initiative called Serve Our Co-ops; Serve Our Country.
The program launched in January 2016 " to honor and employ
veterans, " said Rostom.
Since then, the program has been forming a coalition of co-ops
and other groups to focus attention on the benefits of hiring
veterans, and to actually hire more veterans.
In announcing the program, Jim Matheson, CEO of NRECA,
said, " Our military veterans deserve our unending gratitude for
their service to our country, on Veterans Day and every day.
Veterans possess many of the qualities sought by electric co-ops,
including a deep commitment to service and an uncompromising
work ethic. More than 200,000 service members transition out of
the military to civilian life each year, and we'd like to tap into
that talent to help fill the thousands of co-op jobs opening up. "
Hiring veterans is certainly a decent thing to do, but Rostom
lists why it makes business sense as well.
" They understand their role and they go out and execute it, "
she says. " They bring leadership skills, they work in teams and
look out for each other in that kind of 'brotherhood.' They work
in all types of weather. They are disciplined. They show up on
time. Those are professional competencies that not every job
applicant brings with them, but you find them in the military. "
The initiative grew out of broader strategic planning by
NRECA. That plan envisioned that 25,000 jobs at electric co-ops
would need to be filled in the next few years.
" We are racing to make sure we have the right talent applying
for our jobs, " says Rostom.
Part of that work has been developing and distributing
Veteran Nate Humphrey, a graduate of Southside Virginia Community College's Power Line Worker Training School who works as a lineman at
Southside Electric Cooperative, inspired attendees at the 2017 Gaff-n-Go Lineman's Rodeo Awards banquet by comparing the brotherhood of
those serving in our nation's armed forces to that of those working for electric cooperatives.
24 | Cooperative Living | November-December 2018
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Cooperative Living November/December 2018

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