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 Gold 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.
Ganiram Ghale, Yogendra Angdembe and Sonam Sherpa, Sodexo Chefs and ex-forces employees
/Building_Blocks/GLOBAL/Multimedia/Images/Woolwich-Chefs---Sodexo-Uniform.jpg "Woolwich Chefs")
Ganiram Ghale currently works in the Junior Ranks' Dining Room at Woolwich Barracks as a Senior Sous Chef. Ganiram served in the Army as a Gurkha rifleman and later a chef, where he continued to honour his military commitments as well as feeding his fellow soldiers. In 2014 he was made redundant by the Army after 18 years of service, but now works for Sodexo Defence as a Chef and says: “it’s good for me as it is only one job, I chose Sodexo as I will still work in an environment that I am used to, I was working under the Sodexo umbrella with the Army so the transition was easy to become a civilian chef. There are two main reasons I enjoy working in my role with Sodexo. The first is that I continue to working with military Chefs and secondly, my current work schedule revolves perfectly around my family life.”
/Building_Blocks/GLOBAL/Multimedia/Images/Woolwich-Chef-image.jpg "Woolwich Chefs edited")
Yogendra Angdembe served in the Army for 13 years, but was made redundant in 2013. He was a Chef in the Army and has experience of feeding thousands of troops, but doesn’t feel like he has left the Army as he currently works in Woolwich Barracks as a Sodexo Chef. He feels that he has now settled into his job and likes the fact that he doesn’t have to travel and can look after his family. He says: “I am enjoying working for Sodexo.”
Sonam Sherpa served for 19 years in the Army and took voluntary redundancy in December 2014. He became an Army Chef after 14 years of being in 2 Gurkha Rifles, but now works in Woolwich Barracks as a Sodexo Chef. He says “I have settled in my job and enjoy working with fellow Gurkha Sodexo Chefs, and I don’t have to travel around, I can look after my family and kids. I am enjoying working for Sodexo.”
/Building_Blocks/GLOBAL/Multimedia/Images/Tri-Service_Personnel_MOD_defined.jpg "Tri-Service photo")
/Building_Blocks/LOCAL/Multimedia/Images/Defence/Gold_ERS_Logo_2017_CMYK.JPG "Corporate Covenant Silver Award"){kind=logo}