Arguably, no institution in American society does a better job than the U.S. military of churning out trained, disciplined, loyal employees capable of performing within a team framework under the most challenging of circumstances. There is little disputing the latter's superiority as an organization. It is without peer on planet Earth.
So one would think civilian employers would be tripping all over each other to hire battle-tested, returning soldiers. Alas, that has not been the case over more than a decade of war, with higher unemployment rates for post-9/11 veterans than for the rest of the population, with joblessness particularly acute among vets under age 24.
Why that is can be difficult to decipher. There may be a perception that skills learned in the military are not readily adaptable to the traditional work force. There may be a concern that they're a bad fit in a corporate environment after experiencing a military culture. There may be a bias that the stress of combat means they come home with issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder. There may be fears of future redeployment. Perhaps the military could do a better job of preparing soldiers to transition back with career advice. Whatever the case, too many veterans aren't finding jobs.
Admirably aiming to change that is the United States Chamber of Commerce, which brought its Hiring Our Heroes program to Peoria last week with a jobs fair to introduce vets looking for work to some 50 local employers. The Chamber's national goal is employment for 500,000 vets by the close of 2014.
To his credit Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has given more than just lip service to this issue, recently signing a Hiring Veterans Tax Credit that gives Illinois companies up to a $5,000 tax break for every veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars they hire. He wants 100,000 of those vets employed in Illinois by 2020.
In some ways, it's too bad that such an incentive is needed because it's not as if companies are being asked to bend over backwards doing anyone a favor. These vets have something to offer. Many have strong technological skills, for instance. Beyond that, arguably they've helped make the world safe for business, as anyone who experienced the economic aftershocks of 9/11 should appreciate. A little gratitude would be appropriate. It is encouraging to read that Peoria-based Caterpillar is among those who gets that, as it is investing $100,000 in Hiring Our Heroes to help fund 10 other job fairs across the country. It's a start, and other employers should feel free to follow Cat's example.
But nothing beats actually putting these veterans on the payroll. Ultimately, they fought a couple wars that too few Americans even seemed to notice, for a nation that fell far short of the ideal of shared sacrifice. And they come home to unemployment? That's not right, and America knows it. If there are obstacles, they can be overcome.
Arguably, no institution in American society does a better job than the U.S. military of churning out trained, disciplined, loyal employees capable of performing within a team framework under the most challenging of circumstances. There is little disputing the latter's superiority as an organization. It is without peer on planet Earth.
So one would think civilian employers would be tripping all over each other to hire battle-tested, returning soldiers. Alas, that has not been the case over more than a decade of war, with higher unemployment rates for post-9/11 veterans than for the rest of the population, with joblessness particularly acute among vets under age 24.
Why that is can be difficult to decipher. There may be a perception that skills learned in the military are not readily adaptable to the traditional work force. There may be a concern that they're a bad fit in a corporate environment after experiencing a military culture. There may be a bias that the stress of combat means they come home with issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder. There may be fears of future redeployment. Perhaps the military could do a better job of preparing soldiers to transition back with career advice. Whatever the case, too many veterans aren't finding jobs.
Admirably aiming to change that is the United States Chamber of Commerce, which brought its Hiring Our Heroes program to Peoria last week with a jobs fair to introduce vets looking for work to some 50 local employers. The Chamber's national goal is employment for 500,000 vets by the close of 2014.
To his credit Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has given more than just lip service to this issue, recently signing a Hiring Veterans Tax Credit that gives Illinois companies up to a $5,000 tax break for every veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars they hire. He wants 100,000 of those vets employed in Illinois by 2020.
In some ways, it's too bad that such an incentive is needed because it's not as if companies are being asked to bend over backwards doing anyone a favor. These vets have something to offer. Many have strong technological skills, for instance. Beyond that, arguably they've helped make the world safe for business, as anyone who experienced the economic aftershocks of 9/11 should appreciate. A little gratitude would be appropriate. It is encouraging to read that Peoria-based Caterpillar is among those who gets that, as it is investing $100,000 in Hiring Our Heroes to help fund 10 other job fairs across the country. It's a start, and other employers should feel free to follow Cat's example.
But nothing beats actually putting these veterans on the payroll. Ultimately, they fought a couple wars that too few Americans even seemed to notice, for a nation that fell far short of the ideal of shared sacrifice. And they come home to unemployment? That's not right, and America knows it. If there are obstacles, they can be overcome.
