Military spouses are an integral part of the workforce, bringing a range of unique skills, experiences, perspectives, and abilities to the workplace. However, military spouses face a 24% unemployment rate compared to 3.6% for their civilian counterparts, which puts intense financial strain on military families.
Many companies find it challenging to bridge the gap between business and military spouse needs. But through the implementation of remote work policies, those hurdles can be removed, and hiring and retaining military spouses can succeed.
In an exclusive interview, we spoke to Beth Conlin, Pan-Amazon BD Programs Lead at Amazon and current military spouse of 12 years, to get her insights on what it was like to lead the charge for the Military Spouse Remote Work policy, and how the company (and employees!) have benefited.
Employing over 50,000 veterans and military spouses and having policies in place for virtual work, Amazon is leading the way for hiring and retaining military-related professionals.
Read on to see how implementing a remote work policy that supports military spouse employment can change your workforce…for the better.
Creating a Military Spouse Remote Work Program at Amazon: An Exclusive Interview
Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
What inspired you to create and advocate for Military Spouse Programs at Amazon?
During my time as a military spouse, I’ve experienced firsthand the challenges of maintaining a professional identity through multiple moves around the globe. My family repeatedly lost income, and I was constantly starting over with every relocation. This seemed like a solvable problem, as we work and live in a global economy and virtual work has been evolving.
During my time doing advocacy work, I met Amazon—a company that not only recognized military spouses but celebrated them. I was also interested in creating programs to hire and support military spouses. It was then I knew I found my place and regained my professional identity. I joined Amazon as the Senior Program Manager for Military Spouse Programs, where I was charged with creating programs designed for the hiring, retention, and engagement of military spouses.
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Can you share about the roadblocks you faced along the way and how you addressed them?
Most challenges as they relate to military spouse employment typically come from a place of good intentions coupled with a lack of understanding of who military spouses are and what they bring to the table.
At Amazon, we faced similar challenges, but I was able to show the company the value of military spouses upfront. I could talk to hiring managers about our education, skills, and diverse demographics to get their support to hire more military spouses. Additionally, there’s a lot of data from the nonprofit sector on the value of military spouses in the workforce, which helps to build common ground from a strategic standpoint.
What cultural challenges did Amazon face, and how did you overcome them?
Amazon has always been a place where innovation and delivering for our customers happens best in person. When COVID-19 forced the workforce to evaluate working environments, Amazon, like many others, made a hard pivot to virtual work for its staff that didn’t need to be in person to execute their responsibilities.
During this time, the company also revisited the virtual work policy. As the Military Spouse PM, this gave me an opportunity to introduce a proposal allowing military spouses to work virtually without any additional approvals. To do this, I brought data on the tenure, employee levels, and promotion rates of military spouses to show just how valuable military spouses were to the entire business.
Additionally, I took the time to outline the current state of military spouse unemployment (at that time it was over 30%), meaning Amazon had an opportunity to be an industry leader by providing career portability to military spouses. The virtual work policy went through a handful of iterations to ensure it was clear and easy to follow. Ultimately, it resulted in an exception to policy (or ETP) for military spouses. This allows military spouses to work virtually, assuming the position could support virtual work, without any other approvals.
What surprised you most about launching this program?
Some of the pushback from hiring managers was a surprise. There was concern about “choosing” who could work virtually and who should come into the office. Again, most misconceptions about what a military spouse is comes from a place of being unfamiliar with the military community.
It was important for hiring managers to know that this was a global, company-wide accommodation designed to support the unique needs of military spouse employees—meaning the hiring managers were not choosing, rather they were following company policy.
What are the biggest benefits you’ve seen since implementation?
Retention, hands down, is the biggest benefit. Additionally, the general sense of appreciation our military spouse employees feel knowing that if their role allows it, they can maintain their employment while moving with the military.
Amazon no longer makes military spouse employees choose between financial security or service to our nation. With our virtual work policy, military families can have financial security and continue to serve.
Are there other support and/or hiring programs in place that help with the success of this program?
Amazon has a robust military recruitment program for veterans and military spouses. This encompasses being hired directly into a role, participation in the AWS Military Apprenticeship program, the HoH fellowship for veterans and military spouses, or the newly announced Amazon Fellowship for Military Spouses.
Additionally, Amazon has a global network of veterans and military spouses called Warriors. This affinity group has been a great source of support for our military-connected employees and as advocates for supporting new programs.
If an employer wanted to implement a similar program at their company, what do you suggest they do as a first step?
First, you need to understand your people—what are their strengths, limits, and needs? Equally important is understanding your limits and company culture. What roles can be done virtually? Do you have a method to self-ID so you know how many military spouses work for you? Do you have mechanisms to keep people engaged regardless of their location?
Secondly, look at your military spouse population as the best possible beta testers. Because the military spouse community is so diverse and represents every gender identity, racial and ethnic background, and skill set, if you build a program that works for military spouses, you can be sure to know that it will also work for the rest of your employees.
Partnering for Success
FlexJobs has been a leader in remote work and an ardent supporter of military spouses for 15 years—including many on our team.
If your company is hiring flexible workplace talent, including military spouses, there are many reasons you should consider adding FlexJobs to your recruitment marketing mix.
And we can help you maximize your hiring reach by posting your roles on our sister site, Remote.co!
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