Supporting the Armed Forces
As a leading supplier of quality of life services to the Ministry of Defence, we believe we are well-placed to support regular and reserve forces, ex-forces personnel and military families, not just in our catering, retail and leisure facilities, but through every aspect of our business. This includes our positive recruitment of ex-forces personnel, supporting the mobile careers of military family members and our strong policies to support reservists; we are committed to supporting every one of our employees who is a reservist or who is interested in becoming a reservist and helping to make a part-time military career run as smoothly as possible alongside a career with Sodexo. We are proud that our support to reservists has been recognised with a Defence Employer Silver Award.
We are working closely with the MOD’s official provider of resettlement support, the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to recruit regular service personnel at the end of their engagements and are developing specific pathways within our recruitment process to further engage ex-forces personnel and reservists.
Those applying for roles with us who meet the essential criteria advertised under the ‘ideal candidate’ on the vacancy advertised are guaranteed to progress within the selection process. We are also increasing the awareness of military anniversaries and potential issues such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) amongst our managers and encouraging support to military charities and events such as SSAFA’s Big Brew Up and Armed Forces Day throughout Sodexo.
Our commitment to the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant
The Government’s Armed Forces Corporate Covenant sets out the relationship between businesses and charitable organisations and the British Armed Forces community and Sodexo Defence was one of the first companies to sign up to it in October 2013, followed by Sodexo UK & Ireland in early 2015. Both Corporate Covenant pledges are published on this website and also on the Government website at www.gov.uk and give the details of Sodexo’s commitment to support the Armed Forces community.
Betty Touray, Retail Assistant and part of a military family
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I heard of Sodexo through my husband as he works in the Army. I currently work as a Retail Assistant in the Costcutter shop at Woolwich Barracks.
I feel Sodexo supports me as a military spouse in many ways, for example, by being allowed to work flexible hours. When I joined Sodexo, my boy was only one year old and working full time became difficult with my husband in the Army. I asked if I could reduce my hours and I felt I was supported all the way by Sodexo. I am now able to choose my hours and am able to work around my family and that was really helpful for me. The other benefits I feel are on offer is the amount of training that I am provided to help further my career.
The benefits of working within a Defence environment with your spouse in the Army is that the hours you work is around your family and by living in the area I only have to walk for five minutes to get to work without the need to buy a car or use public transport. The funfairs and activities provided for families is a great benefit and I get to work with a team of polite and friendly colleagues, some of whom are also military spouses, so you get to know them as they live in the same area and understand your circumstances.
I would like to say I am honoured to be able to work for Sodexo and lucky to get all the support and benefits that come with it.
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