Military Veteran Advice Please

[Dscotty]

Does anyone have any advice for military veterans joining Target? Is it easy to get hired if I plan to be an active drilling reservist? Is it easy to get a schedule that allows for regular drills and training? How are vets treated in general? Any horror stories?

 

[Planosss]

We have a NG reservist, that floats in and out. Why don’t you direct these questions to the HR of the store you are interested in? That way you can get concrete answers.

 

[Dscotty]

Thanks for the response. I just want to get a real life perspective from team members because management doesn't always give the true answer for obvious reasons.

 

[sbrando7]

I can't speak for Target or your local Target store but I would assume that as long as you are completely honest with the store and give as much notice as possible for military commitments, Target will work around your military service.

If they don't, they run the risk of you going to local media as well as social media to tell the world that Target is anti-military. That is not something any company wants to be known as.

For example, if you have to do military service a month from now and you immediately tell Target, they should be accommodating. If you have to do military service a month from now and you tell Target the morning of, then that is on you.

 

[Black Sheep 214]

Your employer has to give you time off for your military drills and training per Federal law. I had one National Guardsman on my team, and he had no problem getting the weekends/ time off that he needed for his military obligations. He gave us a training schedule from his unit, and then put in time off requests as needed. I was very happy and proud to have a serving guardsman on my team, and would have felt the same about a veteran.
As far as treatment goes, unless you are hired in a store leadership position, hours can be low for months on end, which makes Spot a possibility for a second job, but not a job that is lucrative enough for most people to live on. Spot likes to have open availability and then just schedule you a few hours a week, with no set schedule, which makes it difficult to get a second job. If you want to give Spot a try, my advice would be to get a job somewhere else first, and when you apply at Spot give an availability that meshes with that job to see how Spot works out for you. The availability that you agree to when you are hired is supposed to be locked in for your first 90 days.
Thank you for your service, and good luck.

 

[Fluttervale]

They're legally required to give you the time off. Just like with any other potential discrimination issue, wait until you have a job offer to tell them.

 

[Antennae]

No one at my store really cares at my store if I'm a veteran, and I like it that way. I'd wager if people would have problems with you being a vet, 99% of it will be your fault for doing the vetbro stereotype.

 

[bikebryan]

As retired military, I would not consider anybody still serving in the Guard/Reserve a "veteran." A "veteran" is somebody who HAS served. A person still doing guard/reserve time is still in the military, thus not truly a "veteran."

However, there are legal ramifications if you are hired but then released because of your guard/reserve commitments.

 

[Dscotty]

You are not wrong about the veteran moniker in general, however, in my case, I got off 5 yrs of active duty as a deployed veteran. I worked exclusively as a civilian for a couple years and then began drilling as a reservist again and deployed overseas several more times after 9/11. I am still a drilling reservist, but I also consider myself a veteran as well. I do not use my military status to come off as "holier than thou" or to intimidate, but I have experieced some hostility here in California nonetheless.

 

[SoCalMama]

You are not wrong about the veteran moniker in general, however, in my case, I got off 5 yrs of active duty as a deployed veteran. I worked exclusively as a civilian for a couple years and then began drilling as a reservist again and deployed overseas several more times after 9/11. I am still a drilling reservist, but I also consider myself a veteran as well. I do not use my military status to come off as "holier than thou" or to intimidate, but I have experieced some hostility here in California nonetheless.

Thank you for your service. CA sucks that way. Very liberal except in a few pockets. Santa Clarita, San Diego, South OC, and not sure where else you would experience less hostility. Possibly the Central Coast?

 

[Antennae]

The wastelands known as Eastern CA

 

[Dscotty]

Thanks for your input. I moved a lot on active duty, but I have been stationed at Camp Pendleton (SoCal) for most of my reserve military career and have always thought of San Diego as a pro-military town. However, even down here I have experienced some vicious backlash, mostly from Massachusetts and San Francisco transplants. I don't mean to paint with a broad brush, but that has been my personal experience. I have some ridiculous stories.