Veterans and transitioning military may be encouraged by recent news about improvements in employment efforts. On November 7th, President Obama announced three initiatives aimed at connecting veterans with jobs.

The Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) Act should give much needed assistance to veterans and transitioning military looking for work. It should also provide financial incentives for businesses who hire veterans. Read about the VOW Act on the House Committee for Veterans Affairs website.

The chairperson of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee , Sen. Daniel Akaka shares his thoughts. He believes that priorities and benefits for veterans have expanded in the past four years. Although, he thinks the expanded benefits have not kept pace with the needs of this country’s 22 million veterans (PDF).

The House Committee on Veterans Affairs website has the following veteran unemployment numbers.

Veterans Out of Work:

• Vietnam Era: 217,000
• Cold War Era: 266,000
• Persian Gulf War Era: 179,000
• Iraq and Afghanistan Era: 235,000

Illinois workNet has always made veterans online resources a priority. The Illinois workNet Veterans pages are designed for Illinois veterans. They provide links to all of the services and resources available. Veterans in some other states do not have the same access to assistance and resources.

The three veterans initiatives rely on help from the private sector. They also rely on improvements in services offered by the government. The Veteran Gold Card initiative was presented in his August 5, 2011 speech at the Navy Yard. The Gold Card is an enhanced version of the Priority of Service available at One-Stop Centers.

My Next Move is the second initiative. This resource helps veterans relate their military jobs and skills to those they will need in civilian jobs. Illinois veterans can get to the My Next Move site from the workNet Veterans Resources – Transition Assistance page .

Veterans Job Bank is the third initiative. The purpose of this resource is to connect veterans with businesses who wish to hire them.

Additional Resources

Individuals

• 100,000 Jobs Mission : A group of private-sector businesses have launched 100,000 Jobs Mission in an effort to hire 100,000 veterans by 2020.
• New York Times : Universities, such as Columbia recruit veterans because of their impressive attributes.
• G.I. Jobs lists the top 100 employers they feel are most Military Friendly.

Workforce Partners

• Gold Card Initiative and Online Tools for Serving Veterans are provided by DOL Region 5.
• A downloadable transcript of a webinar about Gold Card benefits is available at DOL Workforce3one.

Businesses

• Illinois workNet can help you create a plan for your Veterans Hiring Program.
• National Resources Directory  has instructions for businesses that want to participate in the Veterans Job Bank.