Lifetime Show Shines a Spotlight on Military Veterans Forging a New Career with U.S. Steel

Hosted by Montel Williams, "Military Makeover: Operation Career" follows servicemembers as they transition to new careers as civilians.

A Lifetime TV show is shining the spotlight on members of the military who have forged new careers in the steel industry at United States Steel Corporation.

Hosted by longtime television personality Montel Williams, "Military Makeover: Operation Career" shares the stories of U.S. veterans who have successfully transitioned into successful civilian careers.

On its Aug. 26 episode, the show features four veterans who now work for U.S. Steel at various locations around the country, along with providing a history of U.S. Steel. In 2023, 12% of new hires at U.S. Steel were veterans, and the Military Times named the Pittsburgh-based company as a "Best for Vets: Employer" honoree.

Jason Taliaferro, director of sales and president of U. S. Steel's SERVE Employee Resource Group that supports reservist and veteran employees, is among those veterans featured in the show. Taliaferro, who retired with the rank of colonel from the U.S. Army after 23 years of military service, talks about U.S. Steel's support of the Beyond the Yellow Ribbon program and his career at the company.

"To me, culture is king. Once you get that right, it's the foundation for really all other things you want to do with your organization and be able take it to the next level and beyond," Taliaferro says on the show. "At U.S. Steel, we tend to live by our steel principles, and the first one of that is Safety First. Day in and day out, people are doing activities and making decisions that can impact potentially a teammate or themselves if they're not being disciplined, following systems and processes and procedures. The things that made them successful in the military are a lot of the things we look for to be successful here as well."

Fellow U.S. Army Veteran Tyna Hall is also interviewed in the show. Hall, who is a multi-equipment operator at U. S. Steel Minnesota Ore Operations' Keetac facility, left the military because she wanted to support her family while her husband continued with his career in the service. She found her second career at U.S. Steel because of the company's strong support of veterans, she says.

"Having the ability to be able to provide for your family, and make sure they're safe and stable, that's a big, big, big thing. So, I ended up moving to Northern Minnesota, and U.S. Steel is a big part of the community," Hall recalls. "When I first heard about it, I thought, 'Oh, I can't do that! I can't be a miner, what do you mean?' But I heard that they had a strong Veterans support option, and I applied and got interviewed and came in."

Along with providing an overview of U.S. Steel's 120-years in business, the show offers a glimpse at the company's future, including its efforts to become more sustainable and meet its ambitious carbon emission goals. Other veterans featured in the show include Terry Carter, the senior manager of safety and security at U.S. Steel Gary Works; and Ray Tarnow, safety manager at Big River Steel.

Carter is a U.S. Navy veteran who served as a boiler technician on the U.S.S. Capodanno. In 1995, he received a call to join the company, and has been there ever since.

"The culture in the Navy, there was a big focus on team, doing work together to make sure that no one got hurt, everyone stayed safe, we followed the procedures," Carter says. "When I came here to U.S. Steel, one of the first things they did was had us review procedures, talking about jobs and how you can do them safely… One of the big things that you carry over from the military to U.S. Steel, is the thought process of procedures. How the jobs work, learning the jobs, getting the training. The same things we went through in the Navy."

Tarnow also served in the U.S. Navy, and did seven deployments on the U.S.S. Maryland submarine, estimating he spent "three to four years" underwater. Tarnow also worked on the safety team at U.S. Gary Works, before moving to the Big River Steel team. "Now I'm the safety manager of the newest mill in North America, so it's pretty awesome," Tarnow says.

"I have a great team. Very young, very eager, very hungry," he says. "We're out there every day, teaching and educating and mentoring this workforce, which is probably the strongest and hungry workforce that I've ever been a part of."

Tarnow urges veterans to think of U.S. Steel when considering their transition to a civilian career.

"The military is not known for paying well, and U.S. Steel, it's a great home," he says. "I'm a fourth generation U.S. Steel employee. It's provided for my family since the 1920s."

You can find the full episode of "Military Makeover: Operation Career" on U.S. Steel online. It's also set to air on Lifetime TV on Sept. 3.

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