Pacific Gas and Electric Co. has unveiled a long-term career hiring program aimed at veterans. The “1,000 Careers Project” has set a goal of hiring 1,000 veterans into PG&E careers over the next eight years. The company announced the new commitment at the Hire America’s Heroes Military STEM Career Fair, which is being held during the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.
“This effort is about more than providing veterans with a paycheck. It’s about creating opportunities for them to build successful, long-term careers. As a nation, we have the duty to make sure veterans have access to good career opportunities when transitioning back to civilian life. We’re doing the right thing for those who’ve served our country. Moreover, their proven commitment to leadership, accountability and safety are the traits we’re looking for as we work together towards building a better California,” said PG&E Vice President of Talent Management and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer Laura Butler.
The 1,000 Careers Project is the newest expansion of PG&E’s long-standing commitment to veterans. This project will:
- reach beyond the hiring process to include educating internal recruiters, line of business hiring managers and field leadership on the skills and abilities of military veterans
- help ensure that veterans have access to ongoing support and professional development opportunities as they build careers at PG&E
- make PG&E a preferred employer to veterans in California, which is home to the nation’s largest veterans population who possess key company competencies.
“The 1,000 Careers Project will help us meet the challenge of building the next-generation workforce at PG&E, as 40 percent of our workforce is eligible to retire over the next five years. We’re also in an ever-changing industry where technology and innovation are driving the demand to hire for new skills. Veterans have key abilities which will help us effectively answer these concerns,” said Butler.
Since World War I, the utility has had policies in place to hire, train and retrain veterans while helping them develop careers. In recent years, the company has taken these efforts to new levels.
PG&E’s PowerPathway™ program, for example, has graduated 300 veterans over its eight-year history—with 80 percent of them finding a career at PG&E or the utility industry. The program was recently recognized by Vice President Biden, who visited a training class consisting solely of veterans in April. PowerPathway currently has its first-ever active military member participating in an Entry to Gas Operations training program.
This Fall, PowerPathway will expand to include a customized, 200-hour career transition course offering an introduction to a customer service-focused career. Upon completion, 20 individuals will be directly onboarded into a customer service representative position.
For the last three years, PG&E has been recognized as a Top-100 Military Friendly® Employer by G.I. Jobs Magazine. The utility recently received three awards from the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve for its support of employees who serve in the National Guard and reserve. PG&E also received the Faraday Award at this year’s Electric Power Conference for successfully engaging veterans to become long-term employees in the utility industry.
PG&E’s support of veterans goes beyond creating careers. The company actively seeks and works with veterans and disabled veterans business enterprises (DVBEs) to be suppliers. For the last two years, the utility has played host to “Boots to Business,” a workshop aimed at helping veteran-owned businesses work with PG&E.
