COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho—About 27 percent of young military veterans are unemployed, and governors of western states were told Wednesday that they had a role to play in helping them find work.
Former Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson told the Western Governors’ Association meeting that governors should urge their state’s business leaders to hire veterans. Nicholson told the meeting in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, that veterans make ideal employees.
“Use your bully pulpit to exhort employers in your state to go out of their way to hire these veterans,” Nicholson told the governors.
The problem is acute, he said.
Among veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, the unemployment rate is 11.5 percent, he said. But it is more than 27 percent among veterans ages 18 to 24, and 13 percent among those 25 to 34 years old.
Younger veterans who went into the military straight from high school often lack confidence in trying to enter the civilian work force, Nicholson said. Many have little work experience, don’t know how to write resumes and tend to be less educated than those who did not serve, Nicholson said.
But 90 percent of military jobs transfer directly to the private sector, he said.
“They make ideal employees,” he said.
It is important to help young veterans early, so they do not become discouraged and lapse into alcohol or drug dependence, he said.
Nicholson pointed to a program of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce called “Hire Our Heroes” that has held successful job fairs in Chicago and New York, and plans others around the country.
There are plenty of education and job training opportunities for veterans, Nicholson said. What is needed is for employers to offer jobs.
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said that when she visits troops from her state overseas, many are anxious about their job prospects.
The two-day meeting was opened by Boise State football coach Chris Petersen, who spoke about building effective organizations. Petersen told the governors that successful teams depend on talent, motivation, preparation and confidence.
There are some other ingredients also, he said.
“A coach needs a loyal dog, a patient wife and a really good quarterback, not necessarily in that order,” Petersen joked.
Governors on hand Wednesday at the Coeur d’Alene Resort included Brian Schweitzer of Montana, C.L. Butch Otter of Idaho; Jan Brewer of Arizona; Gary Herbert of Utah; and Matthew Mead of Wyoming.
