Online salary database PayScale.com has come up with a list of the most common employers of former military service members. And, it turns out that companies who contract with the military or federal government like hiring workers who are familiar with those organizations. “A key skill that military people have going for them is that they understand how to work with the government and the military,” say Al Lee, PayScale’s director of quantitative analysis.
For example, General Electric made jet engines for the military during WWII and has also been involved in nuclear weapons production. It would certainly make sense to have their production, engineering and logistics teams as military-savvy as they can be.
Lee says to keep in mind, too, that not just the engineering or technical jobs at these companies that benefit from military know-how. From human resources to finance and marketing, knowing how decisions are made or deals are cut for government agencies helps these companies succeed.
“These companies deal with big, complicated, international projects. People with military experience are well-equipped to handle that,” says Lee.
Who are the big employers? Lee says that they fall into some main categories like the aerospace industry, weapons and defense contracting or working for the government directly. Below are example of jobs that certain companies might hire for and their average, annual salaries according to PayScale.
Aerospace: Boeing Company, Lockheed Martin Corporation
| Job Title | Average Annual Salary |
| Aerospace Engineer | $86,300 |
| Aerospace Engineer and Operations Technician | $43,600 |
| Project Engineer, Aviation | $85,700 |
Weapons and Security Companies: Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Booz, Allen, and Hamilton, Allied Barton Security Services Inc., Raytheon
| Job Title | Average Annual Salary |
| Support Technician, IT | $39,000 |
| Electronics Technician | $42,800 |
| Human Resources Generalist | $49,400 |
Government Agencies: United States Government, Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
| Job Title | Average Annual Salary |
| Network Security Engineer | $70,500 |
| FBI Agent | $71,000 |
| Project Manager | $64,800 |
Top Employers of Former Military
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC)
Booz, Allen, and Hamilton
Northrop Grumman Corporation
L-3 Communications
United States Government, Department of Defense
BAE Systems, Inc.
Lockheed Martin Corp
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC)
CACI International, Inc.
The Boeing Company
Department of Veteran's Affairs
Allied Barton Security Services Inc.
Raytheon Company
Securitas Security Services USA, Inc.
Deloitte Consulting LLP
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Exelon Corporation
General Dynamics Corporation
General Electric Company (GE)
Stryker Corporation
Source: All salary data is provided by PayScale.com. Salaries listed are annual salaries for full-time workers with 5-8 years of experience and include any bonuses, commissions or profit sharing.
