No Result
View All Result
Reserve & National Guard
SUBSCRIBE FREE
No Result
View All Result
Reserve & National Guard
SUBSCRIBE FREE
Reserve & National Guard

ESGR marks 50 years of supporting military-civilian relationships

Rebecca Alwine
by Rebecca Alwine
August 9, 2022
ESGR

Comcast NBCUniversal employees gather during the 2016 ESGR commitment signing ceremony in Philadelphia. Comcast Photo/ Joseph Kaczmarek)

Guardsmen and reservists often hold multiple career positions while fulfilling their service in the military. The Department of Defense created Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) in 1972 to ensure seamless relationships can exist between military members and their civilian employers.

“In 50 years of outreach, we’ve presented a voice of the service members to employers in a way that they haven’t seen them before,” said Ronald Bogle, ESGR national chair since 2019. “ESGR has helped to improve the military-civilian divide in multiple ways – not just in hiring practices.”

Retired Brig. Gen. Carol Eggert, also senior vice president of military and veteran affairs at Comcast NBCUniversal, said she believes ESGR helps ease some of the friction between civilian employers, guardsmen and reservists.

As the leader of a team that includes 12 currently drilling Guard and reserve members, she knows what it’s like to work around an employee’s last-minute deployment. And with more than 30 years on active duty and in the Guard and reserve, she also knows what it’s like for the service member to be spinning up for deployment while worrying about their civilian job.

ESGR addresses military-civilian divide 

The division between service members and employers isn’t malicious, Eggert said, but often based on misunderstanding.

Over the past two years, guardsmen and reservists have been busy with orders related the COVID-19 pandemic and general staffing shortages, meaning they’ve had to leave their civilian jobs. Employers might not understand what responsibilities they have to their employees in this situation, which is where ESGR comes in.

RELATED: Law enforcement, health care employers supported guardsmen in 2021

ESGR also helps mediate and resolve issues between employers and service members – answering questions service members have about USERRA, for example. Because ESGR has this role, some employers might be hesitant to reach out to them first, Eggert explained. But ESGR offers resources both for employers and service members.

Building stronger relationships

One of ESGR’s programs, called Bosslift, allows civilian employers to visit a military installation and learn what their military-affiliated employees experience. Eggert said it is one of the coolest things she’s seen.

“They call them lifts because many times it’s a helicopter flight, or you get on a C-130 or something,” she said. “But it’s also just getting out to a training location and [being able to] see the incredible level of skill and responsibility, accountability, our service members possess.”

ESGR also builds relationships with employers through their awards program, which consists of a series of DOD awards. There are seven awards, with the highest being the Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award, which will be awarded this summer.

Read comments
Tags: Bossliftcivilian employersDOD AwardsEmployer Support of the Guard and ReserveESGR
Rebecca Alwine

Rebecca Alwine

Rebecca Alwine is a freelance writer, Army wife, and mother of three. Over the past 15 years, she's discovered she enjoys of coffee, lifting weights, and most of the menial tasks of motherhood. When she's not writing, she can usually be found hiding behind the sewing machine or with her nose in a book. Her motto: work smarter, not harder.

Related Posts

OPINION: Individual Ready Reserve offers chance to ‘take a knee’

by Emily Solberg
3 weeks ago
0
Individual Ready Reserve

The Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) is a little-known option that could help with retention, according to one reservist and military...

Read more

New veterans head to Congress, including January 6-er

by Military.com
4 weeks ago
0
New veterans

New veterans will begin roaming the halls of Congress next week, contributing to one of the biggest classes of lawmakers...

Read more

Veteran’s dog-treat company honors fallen K-9s, supports canine causes

by Kari Williams
1 month ago
0
Canine

Jessica Harris began giving back to her canine companions through K9 Salute after she retired from the Washington National Guard.

Read more

49-year-old guardsman builds brotherhood on junior-college gridiron

by Crystal Kupper
1 month ago
0
Football

A North Dakota Army National Guardsman is a 49-year-old freshman defensive lineman on the North Dakota State College of Science...

Read more

Trucking companies give unwavering support to reserve component

by AmeriForce Exclusive
1 month ago
0
Trucking

As volunteers layed wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery, trucking industry representatives signed ESGR Statements of Support.

Read more

The Hooligans’ Way: Air National Guard’s 119th Wing receives Air Force’s ‘outstanding unit’ award 23 times

by Bianca Strzalkowski
1 month ago
0
Hooligan

North Dakota airmen have produced the outstanding unit of the year 23 times. The 119th Wing attributes success to the...

Read more

Ads

Let's get social

The RNG Drill

News delivered directly to your inbox

Let's connect!

ABOUT US

  • OUR STORY
  • OUR TEAM
  • OUR WRITERS

MAGAZINE

  • GET PRINT
  • GET DIGITAL
  • GET THE NEWSLETTER

GET RESOURCES

  • VETERANS TOOLKIT

ADVERTISE

  • GET OUR MEDIA KIT
  • PUBLISHER’S STATEMENT

SUBMISSIONS

  • PITCH US
  • SUBMIT YOUR STORY

Never miss out on the latest stories.

© 2021 Reserve & National Guard by AmeriForce. Privacy Policy | Terms | Site by Swiss Commerce

Thank you for your interest in The Reserve & National Guard Magazine!

Thank you for your interest in The Reserve & National Guard Magazine!

No Result
View All Result
  • NEWS
  • YOUR CAREER
    • UNIT TRAINING
    • DEPLOYMENT
    • PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
    • RECRUITING & RETENTION
    • ENTREPRENEUR
    • TRANSITION
  • EDUCATION
  • MILITARY LIFE
    • MILITARY SPOUSES
    • MILITARY KIDS
    • PARENTING
  • OFF DUTY
    • ENTERTAINMENT
    • TRAVEL
  • HEALTH
    • FITNESS
    • MEDICINE
    • MENTAL HEALTH
  • OPINION
  • HISTORY
  • MONEY
    • PERSONAL FINANCE
    • BENEFITS
  • GET THE MAGAZINE
    • PRINT MAGAZINES
    • DIGITAL MAGAZINES
    • GET THE NEWSLETTER
  • RESOURCES
    • VETERANS TOOLKIT
  • ABOUT US
    • MEET OUR TEAM
    • OUR AUTHORS
    • ADVERTISE WITH US
    • SUBMIT YOUR STORY
    • PITCH US
    • CONTACT

© 2022 Reserve & National Guard by AmeriForce. Site by SCBW