Our Veterans Deserve Better - Part One

As promised last Friday this is the first of a three part series about our veterans and the crises they face every day. Today's blog targets the unemployment problems they confront when returning home. On Wednesday I'll examine the growing number of active military forced to utilize food stamps. Finally, Friday's views will address those who find themselves living on the streets - homeless.

Last year, 1.9 million veterans had deployed for the wars since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Some have struggled with mental health problems, addictions and homelessness as they return home. Difficulty finding work often makes this adjustment that much harder.

There have been numerous reports of our men and women coming home expecting to return to their old employers only to be told they no longer have a job. These are the very people we welcome back as heroes; these are the people who have taken an oath to protect our nation from "enemies foreign and domestic" in order to preserve our way of life.

Many of the unemployed are members of the Guard and Reserves who have been deployed multiple times. For these citizen soldiers, being deployed two or three times in a five-year period they are discovering the job market views their skills as less competitive. Many companies already hurt by the economy are reluctant to hire them. Other companies are wary of hiring someone who could deploy again or will have medical appointments because of war-related health problems.

Perhaps a possible solution to helping them be more competitive would be to make it easier to transfer certifications they have for jobs they performed in the military into the civilian workforce. Or be given credit for the additional job related skills they acquired.

The unemployment rate last year for young Iraq and Afghanistan veterans hit 21.1 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The national unemployment rate for last year was 9.3 percent.

There is a Federal law designed to protect our returning warriors. Yet, the question lingers, why is the unemployment rate so much higher for our young veterans compared to non-veterans. 

The following is the Federal law taken verbatim from the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (20 CFR, 1002):

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) protects service members' reemployment rights when returning from a period of service in the uniformed services, including those called up from the reserves or National Guard, and prohibits employer discrimination based on military service or obligation.

USERRA provides that returning service members are to be reemployed in the job they would have attained had they not been absent for military service, (the "escalator" principle), with the same seniority, status and pay, as well as other rights and benefits determined by seniority. USERRA also requires that reasonable efforts (such as training or retraining) be made to enable returning service members to qualify for reemployment, if the service member cannot qualify for the "escalator" position, he or she must be reemployed, if qualified, in any other position that is nearest to the escalator position and then to the pre-service position.  

The time limits for returning to work are as follows:

• Less than 31 days service: By the beginning of the first regularly scheduled work period after the end of the calendar day of duty, plus time required to return home safely and an eight hour rest period, if this is impossible or unreasonable, then as soon as possible.
• 31 to 180 days: The employee must apply for reemployment no later than 14 days after completion of military service. If this is impossible or unreasonable through no fault of the employee, then as soon as possible.
• 181 days or more: The employee must apply for reemployment no later than 90 days after completion of military service.

• Service-connected injury or illness: Reporting or application deadlines are extended for up to two years for persons who are hospitalized or convalescing. 

We can all help our returning warriors in their difficult transition.  Get involved with local veterans groups. Volunteer with such organizations as Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves (www.esgr.org). And contact your senator or congressman or congresswoman asking them mandate the enforcement of USERRA. Finally, if you know a returning veteran, take them to lunch and offer to help them network for all their needs.