The U.S. Department of Defense recognized Tucson Electric Power with the highest honor bestowed upon employers for their support of National Guard and Reserve employees in a ceremony at the Pentagon last month.
TEP was one of 15 companies honored with the 2024 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. We were was selected from among 1,758 U.S. employers nominated by a National Guard or Reserve Component Service member this year through Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, a U.S. Department of Defense office.
The Freedom Award, instituted by Secretary of Defense William Perry in 1996, has been given to just 355 companies since its inception. No company can be recognized more than once.
Award recipients are selected for going “above and beyond” in their support of National Guard and Reserve employees. Winners typically offer flexible scheduling and employee leave policies, healthy benefits, strong communications and other support for employee-service members.
“Tucson Electric Power appreciates the service of our veterans and active personnel in the Guard and Reserves,” said Susan Gray, TEP’s President & CEO. “We know their support in defense of the nation comes at a sacrifice to them and to their families. Here in Tucson, we will continue to do our part in supporting their contributions to the country.”
Brian Flores, a TEP Automation Engineering intern who serves in the United States Marine Corps Reserve, nominated TEP for the award. He worked through the nomination process with TEP’s Rustyn Sherer, a Senior Key Account Manager of Business Development who has volunteered as the Vice Chair of Employer Outreach for the Arizona ESGR Central Region since 2014.
David Hutchens, President and CEO of Fortis and a former nuclear submarine officer in the U.S. Navy, joined Susan and other TEP leaders at the ceremony.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III congratulated recipients of the 2024 awards, the 29th year they have been offered. “Employer support is just as important today as it was over 50 years ago when our nation transitioned to an All-Volunteer force,” Austin said. “Without the unfaltering support of employers like this year’s recipients, the men and women of the National Guard and Reserve would not be able to fulfill their vital mission in support of our nation’s defense and security.”
TEP has a long history of supporting military service members through our hiring of veterans, including through the Skillbridge program, and a business resource group for veterans.
