Los Angeles- Men and women who have served in the military will soon have an opportunity to convert valuable job skills into careers at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) today announced a partnership with the Edge4Vets jobs preparation program, which makes its West Coast airport debut at LAX.
Edge4Vets provides veterans the opportunity to meet potential employers face-to-face and receive training and coaching from HR professionals, other veterans, and employee mentors.
“Veterans leave the service with the tools to be strong leaders in the workplace, but thousands in L.A. are still unemployed. That’s unacceptable, but not unsolvable. These men and women are determined, selfless, resourceful, and deserve the opportunity to be self-sufficient,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “In partnership with my 10,000 Strong Initiative and LAWA, Edge4Vets is gearing up to connect veterans to the full-time jobs, new opportunities, and financial security they deserve after sacrificing so much for our country.”
“We have a great opportunity to introduce special talent into our LAX workforce,” said LAWA Director of Airports Administration Paula Adams. “Veterans bring a wealth of unique experiences that are incredibly useful to have in an airport environment. We are delighted to help debut the program on the west coast at LAX, and look forward to the contributions these veterans can make.”
“Edge4Vets is excited to partner with LAWA to accelerate veterans into the airport workforce,” said Edge4Vets Founder Thomas Murphy. “Veterans enhance any workforce that they’re a part of, especially airports, where their ability to work well in a team and keep their cool during emergencies can make airport travel safer for guests.”
LAX’s format for the Edge4Vets program begins with “PREP,” an online preparation program that helps veterans translate their military skills into terminology that resonates with recruiters and HR specialists. Participants also create a personal “Plan4Success” which helps to identify noteworthy skills and leadership experiences to make the candidate stand out.
Following PREP, participants “CONNECT” with recruiters and employees from airport companies and apply the skills and insights learned from PREP. CONNECT features collaboration with employers from over two dozen other airport employers participating in the pilot program. These airport companies will send their own supervisors or managers to serve as “mentors,” who will help veterans match their skills and interests to available airport careers.
“CONNECT” is scheduled to take place April 20, 2017, 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the Hyatt Regency Los Angeles Airport Hotel, and is open to all veterans who enroll and complete the PREP component.
Edge4Vets was developed by the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University in New York, and comes to LAX in partnership with Airport Council International-North America (ACI-NA) following successful program implementations at east coast and southern airports. Edge4Vets has provided jobs prep workshops for non-airport employers on the east coast since 2011, throughout New York, Massachusetts and Florida. Up to eighty percent of veterans who complete the workshops have been hired.
