Senator Murray
Discusses Progress in Veterans Hiring, Importance of Working with the
Private Sector
With Memorial Day approaching, author of VOW to Hire Heroes Act
discussed 5 important steps private companies should take to bring
veterans on board, debunked stigma many employers have attached to the
invisible wounds of war, and cited success stories
Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray,
Chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, delivered a speech
on the floor of the U.S. Senate on the state of efforts to hire
veterans. The speech focused on what steps private businesses are taking
that are improving veterans hiring and what challenges veterans still
face in the job market. The speech comes after extensive discussions
Murray has had with private employers, veterans, and employment experts
on what’s working and what isn’t in the effort to hire veterans. Recent
labor statistics show that unemployment, particularly among young
veterans, remains unacceptably high.
Full text of Senator Murray’s speech:
“Next week Americans will spend time honoring and commemorating the men
and women who died fighting for our great country. Memorial Day is a day
to reflect on and give thanks for the sacrifices made by those who made
the ultimate sacrifice—but it is also a day to look forward and to think
about what we all can do to help our veterans who have also sacrificed
so much—and who deserve our support when they come home. So, I come to
the floor today to discuss an issue that, quite frankly, defies common
sense.
“The high rate of unemployment among recently separated veterans is an
issue that continues to make the transition home for veterans harder
than ever. Despite the fact that our veterans have the leadership
ability, discipline, and technical skills to not only find work, but to
excel in the workforce of the 21st century. Our veterans continue to
struggle.
“Despite the skill, talent and training of our veterans, statistics have
continued to paint a grim picture. According to the Department of Labor,
young veterans between the ages of 18 and 24 have an unemployment rate
that is nearly 20%. That is one in five of our nation’s heroes who can’t
find a job to support their family, don’t have an income that provides
stability, and don’t have work that provides them with the self-esteem
and pride that is so critical to their transition home.
“We know this shouldn’t be the case. We shouldn’t let the skills and
training our nation’s veterans have attained go to waste. And that’s why
we all joined together to overwhelmingly pass my VOW to Hire Heroes Act
here in the Senate late last year. Among many other things, this law
provides tax incentives to encourage businesses to hire veterans, makes
participation in the Transition Assistance Program mandatory for most
separating servicemembers, and expands the education and training we
provide transitioning servicemembers.
“Thanks to this legislation we have been able to take a real, concrete
step toward putting our veterans to work. The tax credit is working. And
VA is set to begin accepting applications for a retraining program that
will benefit unemployed veterans ages 35-60 and help get them back to
work. This bill is only that, a first step.
“Today, I’d like to talk about the next step. And that step is to build
partnerships with private businesses large and small – all across the
country – to hire our nation’s heroes.
“Just recently I was in New York where I participated in a lively
roundtable discussion hosted by the Robin Hood Foundation. This
discussion on veterans’ employment was moderated by Tom Brokaw on the
USS Intrepid and brought together people of various backgrounds –
including former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen and
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan – to talk about
this important issue. What is very apparent is that there is momentum to
build public/private partnerships. What is also apparent is that there
is a lot of room for improvement in this area.
“Now, I want to first make it clear that a lot of companies across the
country are far ahead of the curve on this. In fact, many private sector
companies have already joined our efforts in addressing this critical
issue. For example, JC Penney, one of America’s largest retailers, and
Joseph Abboud, a men’s clothing company, partnered with Iraq and
Afghanistan Veterans of America to launch the Welcome Home Joe – Thanks
a Million Program. To prepare veterans for job interviews, this program
has provided 5,000 veterans with certificates to purchase business
attire.
“For the last decade we have expected our brave men and women in uniform
to prepare for the battlefield. In the process, they have become
accustomed to wearing combat boots and battle dress uniforms. Now they
are expected wear a suit and tie for job interviews - something that
sometimes seems foreign to them. But thanks to this program, thousands
of transitioning veterans can now hang-up their battle dress uniforms
and dress for their next challenge.
“Other companies like, Schneider National, one of America’s largest
trucking companies, are realizing that the skills our veterans have
gained over the last decade of war are directly applicable to their
businesses. Schneider National recognizes that a veteran who has driven
a seven-ton truck across Afghanistan’s dangerous and rugged terrain is
more than qualified to drive a freight truck across our nation’s roads.
And in addition to providing many veterans with new jobs, Schneider
National also provides newly separated veterans with on-the-job training
through their Military Apprenticeship Program. As part of the program,
veteran employees are eligible to earn a monthly educational benefit
check from the VA in addition to a paycheck. Schneider National serves
as an example of how companies can hire veterans that have proven they
can perform the job, but lack proper certifications for civilian
employment.
“The US Chamber of Commerce also must be commended for launching its
Hiring Our Heroes initiative which has sponsored 150 hiring fairs in 48
states. At one of these recent hiring fairs, General Electric, the
employer of 10,000 veterans launched its Veterans Network Transition
Assistance Program. As part of this program General Electric has vowed
to hire 1,000 additional veterans every year for the next five years and
will provide job-seeking veterans with one-on-one mentoring sessions.
These sessions help transitioning veterans improve resume writing and
interviewing techniques so they can capitalize on the skills they’ve
developed during military service.
“This is just a fraction of the work being done at our nations
employers. There are many other success stories at big companies like
Home Depot, and at small companies like General Plastics in my home
state - which has created a pipeline to hire veterans at its aerospace
composites factory. All of these companies are not only examples of
success stories – they have also created a roadmap for how best to find,
hire, and train veterans. And it’s our job to make sure those lessons
are being heard. So today I want to lay out a few things that all
businesses – large and small – can do to bring our nation’s heroes into
their companies.
“First, please help to get the word out to companies to educate their
human resources teams about the benefits of hiring veterans and how
skills learned in the military translate to the work a company does. I
can’t tell you how often I hear from veterans who tell me that the terms
they use in interviews and on resumes fail to get through to
interviewers.
“Second, please help companies provide job training and resources for
transitioning servicemembers. This is something I’ve seen done at large
organizations like Amazon and Microsoft but also at smaller companies in
conjunction with local colleges. In fact, the most successful of these
programs capitalize on skills developed during military service but also
utilize on-the-job training.
“Third, let business leaders know how important it is to publicize job
openings with Veterans Service Organizations, at local military bases to
help connect veterans with jobs, and to work with local One-Stop Career
Centers.
“Fourth, develop an internal veterans group within your company to
mentor recently discharged veterans,
“And finally, if you can, please reach out to local community colleges
and universities to help develop a pipeline of the many, many veterans
that are using GI bill benefits to gain employment in your particular
area.
If we can spread the message on just a few of these steps, I’m confident
that we will be able to continue to build on the success we have had in
hiring veterans.
“But there’s one other – even more important step we have to insure that
businesses are taking – and it has to do with the difficult issue of the
invisible wounds of war some potential employees face.
“I have heard repeatedly from veterans that they do not put their
military service on resumes because they fear it stigmatizes them. They
fear that those who have not served see them all as damaged, or
unstable. We must understand what mental health challenges are, and what
they are not. As we seek to employ more veterans, we need future bosses
and coworkers to understand that issues like post-traumatic stress or
depression are natural responses to some of the most stressful events a
person can experience. We need them to understand that these illnesses
do not afflict every veteran. And most importantly, we need them to
understand that for those who are affected by these illnesses: they can
get help, they can get better, and they can get back into their lives.
“We need to let businesses know that if they have a veteran who is
facing some challenges, that they should do the right thing and
encourage him or her get help. They need to know it is okay to reach
out. Help them take advantage of the excellent mental health care that
the VA is capable of providing. The veteran will be better, and they
will be an even stronger member of your team.
“Those are some steps that our employers can take, but we also need to
make sure that our veterans are taking steps to make sure they stand out
as candidates. Unfortunately, too often our veterans don’t see how their
skills translate from the battle field to the working world. And one of
the biggest reasons for this barrier is that often our veterans don’t
understand the vernacular of the working world.
“Just a few weeks ago I was at home in Washington state discussing these
issues when I met Anne Spurte. Anne is a veteran who helps other local
veterans find work through an organization called The Unfinished
Mission. Anne told me about how she often heard from veterans who told
her they weren’t qualified for the jobs they’d seen online or in the
paper. Repeatedly, they told her they didn’t see how their experiences
mattered to employers in the area. So one day in front of a whole group
of veterans, Anne pulled out this job advertisement from Boeing for a
position as a fabrication specialist. And Anne could once again sense
that the veterans who read the ad thought they weren’t qualified for the
manufacturing job listed in Boeing’s Space Exploration Division. But
then Anne concentrated all the veterans in the room’s attention on the
competencies and qualifications section listed in the job advertisement.
“And she asked all of them: ‘Did you spend time in the service working
together to remove obstacles to help the team accomplish its goals?’
‘Did you work to fully involve others in team decisions and actions?’
‘Where you held responsible?’ ‘Did you demonstrate your commitment to
the team?’
“Around the room every head was nodding as she read verbatim from the
Boeing job announcement. Every veteran understood that they had the core
skills employers like Boeing were looking for -- they just didn’t
realize it.
“What Anne made those veterans come to understand was that their skills
were being lost in translation. And what many of them needed to do was
to simply articulate their experiences in a way that employers
understood.
“So I today I want to reiterate to all of our veterans that no matter
what branch you served in, when you served, or how long you served – the
skills you learned are valuable – and it’s up to you to make sure that
employers see that.
“Our veterans don’t ask for a lot. Often times they come home and don’t
even acknowledge their own sacrifices. My own father never talked about
his time fighting in World War II. In fact, I never saw his Purple
Heart, knew that he had a wallet with shrapnel in it, or a diary that
detailed his time in combat -- until after he had died and my family
gathered to sort through his belongings.
“But our veterans shouldn’t have to ask. We should know to provide for
them.
“When my father’s generation came home from the war – they came home to
opportunity. My father came home to a community that supported him. He
came home to college - then to a job. A job that gave him pride. A job
that helped him start a family. And one that ultimately led to me
starting my own. That’s the legacy of opportunity we have to live up to
for today’s veterans.
“Together working with the private sector we can ensure the brave men
and women who have worn our uniform have that opportunity. We can ensure
they get a fair shot from America’s employers and they are not measured
by fear or stigma. But by what they can do, what they have done, and
what they will do.
“I
want to thank those companies that are leading the way to ease our
veterans’ transition from military service to the civilian workforce.
The Veterans’ Affairs Committee website has a list of some of those
companies that are contributing to this effort. I would encourage my
colleagues to visit that website and suggest companies that can be added
to that list. I look forward to working with you – and many more of our
nation’s businesses - on this important next step in bringing our
veterans home to opportunity.
“And as we celebrate our fallen heroes on Memorial Day next week, let’s
all keep thinking about how we can make sure our veterans are getting
everything they need after they have give so much.
“Before I yield the floor, I’d like to take just a moment to acknowledge
a young Marine Reservist, and Afghanistan combat veteran—who has been
working part-time on my Veterans’ Affairs Committee staff for the last
year. Carlos Fuentes is a hard-working, well-liked young man who
graduated from American University earlier this month. He has helped the
Committee gain a better understanding of what our veterans are facing
when looking for work. I want to thank him for his continued service to
our Nation. I also want to note that Carlos will be getting married this
weekend. And I want to wish him and his bride very happy years to come.
