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High unemployment still haunting military veterans
(Reuters) - Unemployment among U.S. military veterans eased last year, government data showed on Thursday, but remained far higher than the national average rate for the civilian population.
The unemployment rate among veterans who had joined the military after September 11, 2001, averaged 9.0 percent last year, down from 9.9 percent in 2012, the Labor Department said. That was about 1.6 percentage points above the rate for the civilian population.
Joblessness among this group is set to worsen as the war in Afghanistan winds down. Pentagon's proposed budget calls for the U.S. Army to shrink to around 450,000 from a war-time high of 570,000.
The Obama administration and the U.S. Congress have pushed forward an array of measures, including tax credits for companies employing veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
"There is still much work to be done for our nation's youngest veterans," said James Jones, co-chair at the non-profit Call of Duty Endowment in Arlington, Virginia.
"These brave young men and women bring tremendous value to the workplace and it is the job of executives and hiring managers alike to promote their worth and eradicate the still-evident discrepancy in employment rates."
Call of Duty Endowment helps veterans find careers by supporting groups that prepare them for the job market.
Research by Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago economists last year found that veterans deployed overseas for prolonged periods struggled to find work because of the traumas of war, as well as training that did not readily translate into the civilian world.
Among 9/11 military veterans, women suffered the most from high joblessness, with an unemployment rate of 9.6 percent in 2013. That compared to 12.5 percent in 2012. Unemployed female veterans were concentrated in the 18-34 age group last year.
The unemployment rate for men was 8.8 percent, down from 9.5 percent the previous year. Unemployment was high for men in the 18-24 age group, with the rate at 24.3 percent.
For men aged 25 to 34, the unemployment rate was 9.2 percent. For male veterans 35 and older, the unemployment rate was below 6.5 percent last year.
SOURCE: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/21/us-usa-economy-veterans-idUSBREA2J27120140321
The unemployment rate among veterans who had joined the military after September 11, 2001, averaged 9.0 percent last year, down from 9.9 percent in 2012, the Labor Department said. That was about 1.6 percentage points above the rate for the civilian population.
Joblessness among this group is set to worsen as the war in Afghanistan winds down. Pentagon's proposed budget calls for the U.S. Army to shrink to around 450,000 from a war-time high of 570,000.
The Obama administration and the U.S. Congress have pushed forward an array of measures, including tax credits for companies employing veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
"There is still much work to be done for our nation's youngest veterans," said James Jones, co-chair at the non-profit Call of Duty Endowment in Arlington, Virginia.
"These brave young men and women bring tremendous value to the workplace and it is the job of executives and hiring managers alike to promote their worth and eradicate the still-evident discrepancy in employment rates."
Call of Duty Endowment helps veterans find careers by supporting groups that prepare them for the job market.
Research by Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago economists last year found that veterans deployed overseas for prolonged periods struggled to find work because of the traumas of war, as well as training that did not readily translate into the civilian world.
Among 9/11 military veterans, women suffered the most from high joblessness, with an unemployment rate of 9.6 percent in 2013. That compared to 12.5 percent in 2012. Unemployed female veterans were concentrated in the 18-34 age group last year.
The unemployment rate for men was 8.8 percent, down from 9.5 percent the previous year. Unemployment was high for men in the 18-24 age group, with the rate at 24.3 percent.
For men aged 25 to 34, the unemployment rate was 9.2 percent. For male veterans 35 and older, the unemployment rate was below 6.5 percent last year.
SOURCE: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/21/us-usa-economy-veterans-idUSBREA2J27120140321
I worked for an agency that gave veterans preference when hiring. I knew some who were the finest examples of hard work, dedication, and badly needed skills you could imagine and others who were the stereotype of a 'clock watching government employee'.
I appreciate our veterans and all federal workers who work hard and make sacrifices. *Everyone* -- veteran or not -- who wants/needs a job should have one.
I appreciate our veterans and all federal workers who work hard and make sacrifices. *Everyone* -- veteran or not -- who wants/needs a job should have one.
Two Marines and their post-service employment
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Current-Events---/45-million-to-settle-suit-by-vet-shot-at-Occupy-rally/show/2129254
"...Scott Olsen, 26, was among more than 1,000 demonstrators protesting the police clearing of an Occupy Oakland encampment outside City Hall when he was struck by the beanbag on Oct. 25, 2011. Widely viewed images of him falling in the street and being carried away while bloodied ignited outrage and sparked further protests......Olsen was hospitalized after he was struck by a flexible baton round - commonly known as a beanbag. The city described the object as a "cloth-enclosed, lead-filled round fired from a shotgun."
According to Olsen's suit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, the impact "fractured Mr. Olsen's skull and caused severe hemorrhaging of his brain."
The lawsuit did not identify the officer who fired the beanbag, and the city has not identified the officer. But the suit said that after Olsen was struck and was lying on the ground, Oakland police Officer Robert Roche lobbed a tear-gas canister into a group trying to help Olsen, an incident that was captured by a TV news camera.
Oakland police moved to fire Roche after the incident. Roche, a decorated Marine Corps veteran who has been involved in three fatal shootings in the city, is fighting his termination, sources said.
Roche didn't know that Olsen was on the ground when he lobbed the tear-gas canister at the group around him, Roche's attorney, Justin Buffington, said Friday..........Olsen avoided criticizing Roche directly Friday, saying, "People have different backgrounds, and we share in common that we're veterans, but there are a lot of other factors at play. I'm not sure what he was thinking, but I'm sure we all do things that we regret."..........Olsen joined the Marines in 2006, served two tours in Iraq and was discharged in 2010, according to Iraq Veterans Against the War, of which he was a member. He was a systems administrator at a San Francisco software firm when he was injured. "
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Current-Events---/45-million-to-settle-suit-by-vet-shot-at-Occupy-rally/show/2129254
"...Scott Olsen, 26, was among more than 1,000 demonstrators protesting the police clearing of an Occupy Oakland encampment outside City Hall when he was struck by the beanbag on Oct. 25, 2011. Widely viewed images of him falling in the street and being carried away while bloodied ignited outrage and sparked further protests......Olsen was hospitalized after he was struck by a flexible baton round - commonly known as a beanbag. The city described the object as a "cloth-enclosed, lead-filled round fired from a shotgun."
According to Olsen's suit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, the impact "fractured Mr. Olsen's skull and caused severe hemorrhaging of his brain."
The lawsuit did not identify the officer who fired the beanbag, and the city has not identified the officer. But the suit said that after Olsen was struck and was lying on the ground, Oakland police Officer Robert Roche lobbed a tear-gas canister into a group trying to help Olsen, an incident that was captured by a TV news camera.
Oakland police moved to fire Roche after the incident. Roche, a decorated Marine Corps veteran who has been involved in three fatal shootings in the city, is fighting his termination, sources said.
Roche didn't know that Olsen was on the ground when he lobbed the tear-gas canister at the group around him, Roche's attorney, Justin Buffington, said Friday..........Olsen avoided criticizing Roche directly Friday, saying, "People have different backgrounds, and we share in common that we're veterans, but there are a lot of other factors at play. I'm not sure what he was thinking, but I'm sure we all do things that we regret."..........Olsen joined the Marines in 2006, served two tours in Iraq and was discharged in 2010, according to Iraq Veterans Against the War, of which he was a member. He was a systems administrator at a San Francisco software firm when he was injured. "
It is very sad how vets are treated.Besides unemployment large numbers of them are homeless and/or suffering from PTSD.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates that 57,849 veterans are homeless on any given night.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates that 57,849 veterans are homeless on any given night.
It is tough because if you were on the front lines what skills did you actually pick up that is going to prepare you for the job market? Law enforcement? Security? Not a whole lot of men on the front lines doing computer programing.
It would be best to have every military member have college paid for for 6 years. If that means raising taxes then I am for that.
It would be best to have every military member have college paid for for 6 years. If that means raising taxes then I am for that.
How on earth do you solve this problem?
Breaks my heart, truly.
These men & women volunteer, put their lives on the line (in a lot of cases), only to return to a stagnant economy, zero job growth, inflation, and an impossible job-market.
My company makes a point of giving priority to vet's of all shapes and sizes, no matter their job skills (what they did in the military), and we provide OJT if they're applying for a job in which they have no skills. But we seem to be in the minority.
Such a sad situation, but I don't see how it's resolvable.
Breaks my heart, truly.
These men & women volunteer, put their lives on the line (in a lot of cases), only to return to a stagnant economy, zero job growth, inflation, and an impossible job-market.
My company makes a point of giving priority to vet's of all shapes and sizes, no matter their job skills (what they did in the military), and we provide OJT if they're applying for a job in which they have no skills. But we seem to be in the minority.
Such a sad situation, but I don't see how it's resolvable.
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