Nine N.J. companies make ‘Military Friendly’ list

Military Friendly Companies and G.I. Jobs magazine are out with their annual list of Military Friendly Employers for 2021, and nine New Jersey companies earned the designation.

They are:

  • ADP, Roseland;
  • American Water, Camden;
  • Bayer, Whippany;
  • Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, Newark;
  • Johnson & Johnson, New Brunswick;
  • Merck, Kenilworth;
  • Prudential Financial, Newark;
  • Public Service Enterprise Group, Newark;
  • Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Parsippany.

“The veterans chamber is excited to see how many New Jersey companies made it to the list for 2021,” New Jersey State Veterans Chamber of Commerce founder and CEO Jeff Cantor told ROI-NJ. “We know how hard it is to be added to this list, and commend those companies for stepping up to support our transitioning service members, military spouses, veterans and student veterans. We have worked with most companies on the list and know how committed they are to supporting the military and veterans communities.

“Several of the companies, such as Johnson & Johnson and Prudential, have dedicated personnel to ensure they are actively looking at supporting these communities. We have worked with John Perez at J&J and Jim Beamesderfer at Prudential, and know how hard they worked to get their respective companies on that list.”

The honor pleased Bayer, one of the companies on the list. The U.S. arm of the German pharma company has its U.S. headquarters in Whippany.

“To be recognized with this designation is not only an honor for Bayer, but it is a proud testament to our priorities as a company,” Raymond F. Kerins, senior vice president and head of corporate affairs for Bayer in the U.S. and co-executive sponsor of BRAVE, the company’s military business resource group, said in a prepared statement. “The courageous men and women of our country’s armed forces have earned the respect and admiration of all Americans through their spirit of self-sacrifice and their service to their country. It is equally important that we recognize the skills, talent and character that they add to the workplace.”

The companies that made the list will be featured in December’s issue of G.I. Jobs and featured on MilitaryFriendly.com.

“Companies that have earned this designation have invested in substantive programs to recruit, retain and advance veterans within their organizations,” Josh Rosen, director of Military Friendly, said in a statement. “To them, hiring veterans isn’t just the right thing to do. It’s good for business.”

Several other companies based elsewhere, but with a major presence in the Garden State, were also on the list.

“We are so happy to see so many businesses that are headquartered in New Jersey on this list and doing the right thing for these communities,” Cantor said. “The veterans chamber promises to work with all of these businesses to help them reach their goals in both hiring and bringing on veteran-owned and disabled veteran-owned businesses as approved vendors to improve their diversity spending goals. We remain committed to helping any company who wants to do business with the military and veterans communities.”