AT&T will provide 5,000 career opportunities for veterans

AT&T said Tuesday that it is stepping up veteran recruiting efforts with the goal of hiring 5,000 veterans and their family members over the next five years.

AT&T announced the goal at a White House event with Michelle Obama and other companies supporting the Joining Forces Initiative that she co-founded.

AT&T also said that it plans to lead an initiative with JPMorgan Chase and the 100,000 Jobs Mission to launch a veteran talent exchange later this year. The exchange will enable active-duty military and veteran job candidates to “opt-in” to a talent-sharing database to facilitate the sharing and referral of veteran candidates among participating 100,000 Jobs Mission member companies.

JPMorgan Chase, AT&T and nine other companies started the exchange in 2011. Since then, it has grown to 101 companies committed to hiring at least 100,000 veterans by 2020. According to AT&T, the coalition’s companies collectively hired 64,628 veterans through the first quarter of 2013.

About 60 percent of veterans who joined AT&T in 2012 made their transition to the private sector as technicians. In addition, veterans, many with college degrees, are finding employment with AT&T as project managers, IT professionals, financial analysts and supply chain managers.