In a news release, Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, a Department of Defense operational committee based in Arlington, Va., announced UPS Chair and CEO Scott Davis on Tuesday signed a statement of support for the Guard and Reserve at UPS headquarters in Sandy Springs.

Davis was joined by Guard and Reserve National Chair James Rebholz, Lt. Gen. James Jackson, commander of the Air Force Reserve Command, and Maj. Gen. Jim Butterworth, the Adjutant General of Georgia.

In 1996, the year the Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award was created, UPS’s Central Florida District was one of five employers to receive the award. In 2002, the entire UPS enterprise was honored with the Freedom Award, the nation’s highest recognition for employers supporting National Guard and Reserve members.

UPS reports veterans, guardsmen and reservists make up 7.5 percent of its global workforce and the company showed a 35 percent increase in veteran hires over the previous year.

The statement of support confirms UPS’s pledge to:

o Fully recognize, honor and enforce the Uniformed Services Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act.

o Ensure managers and supervisors have the tools they need to effectively manage those employees who serve in the Guard and Reserve.

o Appreciate the values, leadership and unique skills service members bring to the workforce and encourage opportunities to hire guardsmen, reservists and veterans.

o Continually recognize and support our country’s service members and their families in peace, in crises and in war.

Information: Tom Bullock, (571) 372-0709, email at tom.bullock@osd.mil or visit www.ESGR.mil.