Veteran Unemployment Still A Pressing Issue, But VetNet Making Inroads
Apr 13, 2013
Northville, MI (Law Firm Newswire) April 12, 2013 – Unemployment for post-9/11 veterans continues to be at high levels.
The recent numbers confirm what many military unemployment specialists have suspected: unemployment rates for younger vets continues to outpace the numbers for unemployed civilians. Almost one in 10 returned members from Iraq and Afghanistan is unemployed. The latest numbers by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate that young male vets are unemployed at 9 percent, up from 7.6 percent in February of 2012. Young female vets who reported an unemployment rate of 7.4 percent last year now face unemployment at 11.6 percent.
“Vets are returning with marketable skills, yet they continue to have trouble finding employment,” commented veterans disability lawyer James Fausone.
The number of post-9/11 vets who are unemployed is 203,000 as of February of this year. This time last year, that number was 154,000. There is a growing concern that the federal budgets cuts as part of the 2013 sequestration may spike those unemployment numbers even higher.
According to the founder and CEO of the nonprofit organization Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the sequester is adversely affecting returning vets. More than one-third of the 200,000 members of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America are employed in government jobs – TSA, Homeland Security, and the Pentagon. Also threatened are contract jobs for vets.
One free employment tool available to vets is VetNet, as part of a joint effort by Google and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. VetNet is an employment database as part of the “Hiring Our Heroes” program; an outreach offering job fairs, career services and community. Now in its second year, Hiring Our Heroes has so far held more than 370 hiring fairs and has found employment for 14,100 vets and military spouses.
The media company Comcast announced in March that it, along with NBCUniversal, met their goal of hiring 1,000 vets, and has now pledged to “Hire our Heroes” to employ 1,000 more vets by 2015. The vets working for Comcast and NBCUniversal are employed in technology, operations, network engineering, programming, theme parks, marketing, customer service, and human resources.
James G. Fausone is a Veterans disability attorney and Veterans attorney with Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC. To learn more or to contact a Veterans disability attorney or Veterans attorney call 1.800.693.4800 or visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com.
Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC
41700 West Six Mile Road, Suite 101
Northville, MI 48168
Toll Free Phone: 800.693.4800
