Press Release from LinkedIn
Today we’re expanding our military and veterans program to include more spouses, children, and caregivers across the country to better support service members and their families.
Beginning next month, LinkedIn Premium will be available for spouses in every branch of the armed forces, regardless of where they are in their professional transition. Our commitment is to support spouses not just through every permanent change of station (PCS), but also through a potential career change or a job loss.
We understand the challenges military spouses face with frequent moves and deployments when it comes to growing their careers and we’re excited that nearly 2,000 have utilized LinkedIn Premium since we partnered with the Department of Defense’s Spouse Education and Career Opportunities Program to provide one year of Premium to individuals who experience a permanent change of station (PCS).
As we’ve met hundreds of military families through transition summits with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and with our close partnership with the DOD, we’ve learned more about how we can better support this community and help ensure that more family members connected to a service member have access to the career resources they need. More than 650,000 active duty military spouses will move to a new location on average every 2-3 years as they care for and support their service member and family. The frequency of this displacement often comes with great sacrifice and leads to high rates of unemployment and underemployment, increasing the need for flexible careers and support.
In addition, in partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs, we will also offer Premium to any individual who receives the VA Fry Scholarship, which is awarded to spouses and children of those killed in the line of duty during post-9/11 conflicts. We will also offer Premium to family members of wounded veterans who are enrolled in the VA’s caregiver program. These parents, spouses, and children of returning service members often disrupt their career paths to take on the important role of caregiver.
The U.S. military’s nearly 1.1 million military spouses, veteran caregivers, and the families of the fallen each have a valuable role in making up the fabric of the military community. On LinkedIn, this community continues to be one of the most collaborative, active, and engaged communities. LinkedIn is honored to support service members, military spouses, family members, and caregivers as they continue to demonstrate their willingness to mentor, network, and offer career support and advice across the community.
