Dept. of Military Affairs: Military job placement program to celebrate hiring milestone

Contact: Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs Office
Office: 608-242-3050 or Cell: 608-516-1777

A Nov. 5 ceremony and recognition event in Portage, Wisconsin, will celebrate a Wisconsin National Guard-run military employment program’s progress in finding jobs for service members.

More than 1,000 service members and spouses have found meaningful employment thanks to the efforts of the Wisconsin Employment Resource Connection, or “WERC” program.

WERC, which is operated by the Wisconsin National Guard, and the federally funded Job Connection Education Program, or JCEP, collaborate to help members of the National Guard, the Reserve components of all services, Wisconsin service members transitioning to civilian careers and the spouses of service members find jobs. The program’s origins date back to 2012, when Gov. Scott Walker encouraged the Wisconsin National Guard to develop an employment assistance program to help combat high unemployment in the ranks.

Since then, WERC has helped more than 1,000 service members and their spouses craft resumes, provided interview coaching and built relationships with employers on their way to landing jobs. The overall unemployment rate in the Wisconsin Army National Guard dropped from 10.1 percent in 2012 to 3.7 percent in 2015 – a figure that is lower than both the state and national average.

To celebrate this success, senior leaders from the Wisconsin National Guard, partners from the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs, employers and, and WERC program participants will be in attendance to commemorate the milestone of reaching 1,000 job placements.