CSX and Wounded Warrior Project Honored with 2024 Gold Halo Award for Best Employee Engagement Initiative

Veteran Drone Training Program Showcases How Innovation Meets Impact

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., May 17, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CSX’s Pride in Service initiative was awarded Gold in Engage for Good’s (E4G) 22^nd Annual Halo Awards for Best Employee Engagement Initiative and Silver for Best Direct Service Initiative.

This honor recognizes CSX’s partnership and support for Wounded Warrior Project (WWP)’s Drone Training Program. The program provides veterans with initial training to become certified FAA drone pilots and advanced training for warriors who are already certified. Warriors also receive hands-on experience at a CSX rail yard, getting an immersive look at how CSX uses drones. Through this program, warriors are exposed to tangible and transferable skills that will help achieve new and meaningful employment opportunities at the center of jobs of the future.

Drone Training is part of a broader partnership with WWP and their Warriors to Work Program, which supports warriors and their families transitioning to the civilian workforce. To date, WWP and CSX have placed over a dozen warriors in CSX jobs since the inception of the partnership. The idea for the Drone Training partnership was developed due to increasing demand in the job market and increasing usage of the technology in the transportation industry; in fact, by 2025, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International estimates there will be more than 100,000 new drone pilot jobs.  

“CSX is proud to be recognized by Engage for Good for our partnership with the Wounded Warrior Project to provide innovative programming and resources in service to our nation’s veterans”, said Joe Hinrichs, president and CEO of CSX. “Strengthening communities is a core value at CSX, and this Halo Award is a testament to the impact that the thousands of ONE CSX team members and our partners have across our network through our Pride in Service initiative.”

The Halo Awards, presented at the first-ever Halos Gala hosted at E4G’s annual conference on May 15, are the highest recognition for outstanding corporate social impact initiatives. CSX has been recognized as a winner among a total of more than 170 campaign applications showcasing how corporate and nonprofit partnerships skillfully intertwine their resources to have a measurable impact on the cause and the business. In an effort to expand access to E4G’s platform to a broader range of programs, the 2024 awards featured ten new categories, among them the Best Direct Service Initiative award presented to CSX recognizing thoughtful continuity and consistency of this social initiative with CSX’s business goals.