
- Unemployment among veterans returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan War fell from 15.2 percent to 9.1 percent over the last year.
- The overall rate for veterans fell from 9.9 percent to 7.5 percent over the same period.
- An estimated 1 out of every 5 guardsmen who serve in the National Guard or Reserves is unemployed.
- Unemployment is highest among young male veterans 18 to 24 years old.
- Although the unemployment rate among other young Americans went down, it stayed the same for new veterans.
- According to the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, veterans are considered less desirable than younger applicants with more specific skills, despite the experience and training veterans receive.
- To cut unemployment rates among veterans, President Barack Obama is calling for a new program that will give veterans jobs by rebuilding roads, trails and levees on public lands.
- Obama is proposing that communities that hire veterans to work as policemen and firefighters will get preference in the grants competition. An additional $4 billion for the Community Oriented Policing Services Program and $1 billion for the firefighter grants.
- For the post-9/11 veterans who did find employment, about a third of males and half of females are working in management or professional jobs.
- Over 14 percent of employed post-9/11 veterans have found federal government positions.
- New veterans are more likely to work in government than other veterans, especially if they have a service-related disability.
Sources:
Jobs For Veterans [1]
Huffington Post [2]
Washington Post [3]
LA Times [4]
IAVA [5]