Wisconsin Soldier Answers the Call
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This cross-post from AFSCME profiles Sgt. 1st Class Chet Millard, one of hundreds of AFSCME members serving their country in the active military in Iraq and Afghanistan. Millard was on the Oct. 12 cover of Time magazine.
Every day, public service workers answer the call of duty. Many—police officers, firefighters and corrections officers, for example—take enormous risks to save lives.
Others keep our roads in good repair, make sure our children arrive safely at school and perform back-breaking work caring for the sick and disabled.
Others, like the hundreds of AFSCME members who have been placed on active military duty since 2001, have gone an extra mile by serving in Iraq, Afghanistan or in the United States.
Sgt. 1st Class Chet Millard is one of these dedicated public service workers. Employed as a corrections officer at the Jackson Correctional Institution in Black River Falls and a member of Local 219 (Council 24), the 32-year-old commander of Wisconsin National Guard’s 951st Engineer Company has served in both Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003.
U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard Join Helmets to Hardhats Program
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The U.S. Army Reserve and the National Guard have joined the Helmets to Hardhats program, founded in 2003 by AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD) unions, together with employers with union workforces. The Army Reserve and National Guard now join the current partners of the Helmets to Hardhats program: the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines and Coast Guard.
Helmets to Hardhats has helped more than 5,000 military vets find new careers as electricians, plumbers, roofers and other skilled trades. BCTD President Mark Ayers told Workers Independent News (WIN) that the new agreement presents
an extraordinary opportunities for all the military folks. And it’s an opportunity for us because these are the kind of people that we are seeking. They’re the best of the best in America as far as we’re concerned.
Helmets to Hardhats helps match vets and soon-to-be vets with apprenticeship and training programs offered by the BCTD’s 15 unions. Veterans can use their G.I. Bill education benefits as they complete the certified apprentice programs. Darrel Roberts, executive director of Helmets to Hardhats, says the program
is unique in that it was created with the singular intent of helping National Guard, Reservists and transitioning active-duty military members connect to career opportunities in the construction industry, one of the last bastions of solid middle-class wages for working Americans. Helmets to Hardhats recognizes this and is committed to placing veterans in careers that provide family-supporting wages, good benefits and a decent chance at realizing the American dream.
