By Debbie Gregory.
Unemployment Rates for Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are currently at 7.3%. But until recently, those numbers were near or above 10% for several consecutive months. And 70% of Veterans say that finding employment is the single greatest post-military challenge. While finding employment for Veterans remains an issue, keeping Veterans employed has apparently become a problem as well.
Many Veterans find immediate employment at a varying array of jobs and careers. These include retail, food service and private security jobs, but also career employment as contractors and corporate professionals. But there seems to be a growing trend of Veterans who, for whatever reason, don’t stay too long in these jobs.
VetAdvisor and the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University are conducting a survey to try to determine the reasons why many Veterans leave their initial civilian jobs. Using data collected by the survey, these organizations will attempt to provide insight into how companies can best structure their Veteran employee retention programs and hopefully improve the retention rates of Veterans in the workplace. Due to a lack of current data on the subject, this survey is critical for improving Veteran unemployment statistics.
The survey asks questions designed to gain an insight on specific circumstances and experiences involved with Veteran employment, and why they leave their first post-military jobs. Whether the reasons are going back to school to utilize the Post-9/11 GI Bill or other Veteran education benefits, poor wages, discrimination or lack of job satisfaction, the survey will hopefully reveal the answers. The data collected by this survey could directly benefit you and millions of ther current and future Veterans.
The survey is completely anonymous and takes 10-30 minutes. It is intended for all active military members and Veterans. To take the survey, click here.