Santa Fe, N.M, May 27, 2016- Today, Walmart announced it has hired 130,828 veterans since it announced its Veterans Welcome Home Commitment in May 2013*, including 1,191 in New Mexico, which represents a 45% increase in veteran hiring in the state in the last year alone. Of those 130,828 veteran hires, 15,176 have been promoted to jobs with higher pay and greater responsibility.

"New Mexicans will always carry on a proud legacy of service to our nation in the U.S. Armed Forces," Governor Susana Martinez said. "We appreciate Walmart's commitment to helping our veterans find good opportunities when they return home."

On Memorial Day 2013, Walmart introduced the Veterans Welcome Home Commitment, which guaranteed a job offer to any eligible, honorably discharged U.S. veteran who was within 12 months of active duty. The initial goal was to hire 100,000 veterans by the end of 2018. In May of 2015, Walmart announced the expansion of that original projection, with the goal of hiring 250,000 veterans by the end of 2020. Walmart has also changed the eligibility from within 12 months of active duty, to any veteran who has been honorably discharged since the announcement of the commitment in May 2013.

"We want to make sure veterans feel welcome when they come home and are transitioning to civilian life," said Anna Romero, Assistant Store Manager of a Santa Fe Walmart who served Third Class in the US Navy. "We want to hire associates who have the leadership and discipline that military experience brings. I know first-hand how these skills translate to working in retail because I've worked my way up from a Claims Associate to Assistant Store Manager with Walmart."

Despite unemployment among veterans being at its lowest in eight years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, veterans from the Gulf War era continue to be under- or unemployed.

"As a veteran, I know how critical it is for our men and women in uniform to have a strong support structure when transitioning back to civilian life," said Retired Brigadier General, Gary Profit, senior director of military programs for Walmart. "A job is an important part of that transition, and at Walmart, we're proud to use our strengths as one of the nation's largest employers to be a part of that bridge back home by providing meaningful opportunities to 1,191 veterans, and counting, in New Mexico to use their unique talent and skills. Veterans are among some of our strongest associates and we are pleased to see the growth and success they have achieved at Walmart."

The Walmart Foundation's Commitment to Veterans and Military Families

Beyond Walmart's Veterans Welcome Home Commitment, the Walmart Foundation is also reinforcing its support for transitioning military members and their families with the announcement of $2.6 million in grants to nonprofit organizations that support veteran reintegration - The American GI Forum and Swords to Plowshares.

Walmart and the Walmart Foundation have demonstrated a strong commitment to supporting our nation's military service members. In October 2015, Walmart launched the Greenlight A Vet campaign to help create visible and actionable national support for veterans nationwide. Walmart invited all Americans to show support for veterans by changing one light bulb in their home to green, raising awareness on social media, volunteering and serving with veteran groups in their community, or starting a mentor/mentee relationship with a veteran.

While a job is a vital piece of transitioning from military to civilian life for a veteran, it also takes a coordinated, multi-sector effort to create healthy transitions to civilian life. In 2011, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation committed $20 million by 2015 to support veterans and their families with assistance from programs that provide job training, transition help and education. With the early completion of the commitment in May of 2014, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation renewed their commitment, announcing an additional $20 million through 2019 to support veteran job training, education and innovative public/private community-based initiatives that address the challenges many of our veterans face when returning to the civilian workforce and their communities. This includes $1 million in support for Welcome Home North Carolina, a pilot initiative to strengthen regional collaboration among veteran-serving organizations.

For more information about Walmart's Veterans Welcome Home Commitment, please visit: http://www.walmartcareerswithamission.com and follow @WalmartToday on Twitter.