High Unemployment Rates Among US War Veterans

By: EW News Desk Team   Date: 25 July 2011

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25 July 2011

Young male American war veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq are finding it increasingly difficult to secure a good-paying job as they struggle to re-adapt to civilian life.

According to a Reuters report, 28.3 percent of male veterans aged 18-24 – and served their nation after 9/11 – were unemployed in the second quarter of this year, up from 21.9 percent for the whole of last year.

Male veterans aged 25-34 fared slightly better. An average of 14.5 percent were unemployed between April and June of this year, compared to 9.5 percent of non-veterans in the same age group.

"Finding the small-time jobs, maybe at a restaurant or working in retail, is one thing, but a lot of guys out are looking for something a little more permanent," said 25-year-old Thomas Jones, an infantryman who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, to Reuters.

To alleviate the problem, the Department of Veterans Affairs has developed a website that will link war veterans to prospective employers, while a new pilot program has been created at eight college campuses that will allow veterans to be able to connect to counsellors that can advise them on how to make the most of their education.

According to Ruth Fanning, director of Veterans Affairs’ Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service, current efforts have been particularly focused on young veterans as well as for veterans with disabilities.

"What we're doing is helping them adjust to the fact that they're starting a new career and develop a plan for the best career for them," she said.

"Young veterans "are the most vulnerable," she said. "They're least likely to have anything other than entry-level employment in their past."


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