VETS 4 | Suffolk County Offers Weekly Service to Vets

This is Mark and he is dressed up as an American
 militiaman, circa 1754-1763, during the French
 and Indian War. This reenactment was June 30,
2013, at the Sulgrave Manor in England.
Photo by JT Marlin.

As we Americans celebrate Independence Day, it is worth reflecting on what made Independence possible, namely the voluntary services of American militiamen in the French and Indian War, which drove out the French and their Indian allies from the colonies and made it possible for the colonies to declare their independence from Britain.

In England last week I stumbled upon a reenactment of the French and Indian War at the Sulgrave Manor, near Bambury, in Northamptonshire, which is generous of these Brits. After all, it was the costly debts incurred during the French and Indian War that drove George III foolishly to seek to pay them off by taxing on the colonies.

We should remember our debt to these militiamen (and to the British soldiers who fought next to us for a time). But these soldiers are long gone. We can do something more practical to remember our debt to more recent veterans.

The recent Gulf Wars have killed fewer Americans but have generated more injuries among the survivors, including mental trauma.

Suffolk County, New York, has a very practical way of showing respect to veterans. It supports a one-day-a-week counselor for Vets in each community.The county assigns a trained Veterans Service Officer who shows up at a local town hall office from 10 am to 4 pm to answer questions.

The town must provide the space and must also pay $8,000 a year towards the cost of the VSO. Southampton Town has approved the expenditure. The VSO will provide the following services:

• Facilitate access to counseling and other services to which the Veteran is entitled.
• Advise the families of Veterans of the services available to them - the spouses of Veterans, their dependents, and their survivors.
• Determine qualification for benefits.
• Help prepare applications for benefits.
• Track applications.
• Answer any other questions about Veteran educational, loan and other programs.

These VSO services could be leveraged by local Veterans organizations to provide assistance to Veterans who are too disabled to visit the VSO's office. Two Post Commanders - Martin Knab of Post 388 in Sag Harbor and Rich Steiber of Post 924 in Hampton Bays - welcomed the program. 

Thanks to Emily Toy of the Independent for her story on this subject.

VETS 3 | VA Loans–NYC Issues

Veterans mostly leave the armed forces after a few years' service. They return home, get married or have (more) children, and they look for a house. 

The Veterans Administration (VA) Loan program was created for them during the World War II years and helped create the post-WWII housing–and baby–boom. 

The program has helped more than 18 million veterans become homeowners. It was designed to provide financing for either the purchase or the renovation (or both) of a home owned by veterans and their spouses. 

The unique features of the VA program are that a veteran can purchase a home with no money down and almost no out-of-pocket costs. 

The loans are made by private lenders and are guaranteed by the VA. Veterans can ordinarily borrow up to $417,000, with a higher amount in pricey communities - up to $723,000 in New York City. The advantage for a veteran is that the guarantee by the VA makes possible a zero-down-payment mortgage without paying the private mortgage insurance that would be required on a mortgage loan with less than a 20 percent down payment.

This is a very attractive program. Yet with 24 million veterans in the USA today, the 18 million users of the VA loan program over 69 years implies a relatively low usage of the program. The problems may be:

• Lack of knowledge of its existence (some lenders don't promote it),
• Lack of appreciation of its value.
• Legal and other obstacles in urban areas.

The New York City Case

While it is fairly easy for veterans to get a VA loan on a house, it turns out to be extremely difficult to secure a VA loan on an apartment, which are mostly condominiums or co-operatives in New York City, to allow for multiple owners of a single building. 

In order to buy a condo apartment with a VA loan, the building that contains the condo must be approved by the VA in a process that is unfamiliar to most real estate agents. 

The building in which the condo is located must get VA approval. Few condo projects have VA approval. For example, Alex Hecht of Warrior Family Foundation today (June 11, 2013) searched each of the five boroughs of New York City using the VA's own online condo search tool and found only 30 VA- approved condo complexes in the entire city - a city in which 50 percent of all the housing units are apartments, the highest ratio in the country (in Los Angeles it is 42 per cent and in Washington, DC it is 41 percent).

Moreover, under the current rules, apartments in housing cooperatives are not eligible for VA loans at all. Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney, who represents the Upper West Side of Manhattan and parts of Western Queens, has introduced a bill that would give the VA authority to guarantee loans on co-ops, an obvious first step in solving the urban VA loans problem.

These obstacles affect not only veterans looking to buy in dense urban centers like New York City, where most housing units for sale are condos or co-ops. They also impact vets in smaller cities and suburbs around the country who are considering apartments as a cost-saving alternative to stand-alone homes.

The New York Times, in a story today by Elizabeth A. Harris, shows the plight of Joe Vollono, a graduate of the Oxford University MBA program, and his wife Monica Raquel Ortiz, a former State Department staffer for ten years. Mr. Vollono served in the Navy submarine force for four years and qualifies for a VA loan. He was ready to sign papers in January but is still waiting for the loan.

Advantages of a VA Loan

Nevertheless, the VA loan guarantee program remains a very attractive option for veterans looking to buy a house or even a condo. Here are some of the features:

• No down payment is required to buy the property.
• The VA will guarantee up to 103.5 percent of the loan if it falls within the maximum loan limits of the area (the 3.5 percent is for the fee), i.e., $723,000.
• Mortgage insurance is not necessary even though no down payment is required.
• The interest rates are competitive with other loans.
• No funding fee needs to be paid out by a disabled veteran.
• Some of the lenders fees are limited, for example a bank can only charge a 1 percent origination fee.
• In a cash-out refinance, the refinance can be for 100 per cent of the value of the home.
• For new manufactured homes, the builder must give the purchasing veteran a one-year guarantee that the home has been constructed to VA-approved plans and specifications.
• The borrower is allowed to prepay part or all of the loan without a prepayment penalty.
• If a veteran homeowner is having issues paying his or her mortgage due to temporary financial difficulties, the VA will assist with personal loan servicing and financial counseling.

Active military members are also eligible for VA loans.

VET STORY 1 | Sgt. Tom Collins at Bletchley Park (Comment, Jan. 2, 2015)

Sgt. Tom Collins of East Hampton, NY, in his
proudly worn VFW jacket and his Bletchley
 Park cap, inscribed with his WW2 nickname,
"Sam Scram". Photo by JTMarlin.

Sgt. Thomas L. Collins, a lifetime resident of East Hampton, served in 1944-1945 in England. Not until 2010 did he receive official recognition of his contribution to the World War II effort.

He was honored by both the British and the American Governments in that year, just before he died. Sgt. Collins was the sole technician to bring the top-secret Dragon 1 Cryptography Machine to Bletchley Park (the other two people in the plane were the pilots), Britain's cryptography center.

He trained British cryptographers and technicians how to use the Dragon 1, and stayed to take care of it and make sure it did its cryptographic job. Since his mission was top secret, he couldn't talk about it until the 1990s. 

Left side of Sgt. Tom Collins's cap
and jacket. Photo by JTMarlin.

Now Bletchley Park is a public museum and Tom was able to talk about his mission - and be honored for it:

• In July 2009, he was awarded a UK Certificate of Appreciation and Medal for his participation in the important Bletchley Park cryptography program. The medal and certificate arrived in March 2010.
• Less than two months later, on the Friday before Memorial Day 2010, Congressman Timothy Bishop of New York's First District read into the Congressional Record a tribute to Sergeant Collins. It is reproduced below.
• His role is fully described and appreciated in a 2015 book (p. 609) about the cryptography machines at Bletchley.

The "Sam Scram" nickname that Sgt. Collins's colleagues at Bletchley Park gave him came from an American character by that name on a popular wartime radio show.

Congressman Bishop's tribute was well-timed, as Sgt. Collins had the opportunity to be honored by his hometown Legion and VFW Post at the 2011 Memorial Day services.

Cong Record May 28, 2010

Award by British PM Gordon Brown, 2009. Photo by JT Marlin.

Sgt. Tom Collins, aka "Sam Scram". Photo by JT Marlin.

He did not live to see the next Memorial Day, 2011. He died of a heart attack on May 18 at his home on Springs Fireplace Road in East Hampton. He was remembered on Memorial Day 2011 by the Legion and the VFW.

The East Hampton Star obituary included the following:

Thomas Loudon Collins, a lifelong resident of East Hampton who was credited with helping to decode 143 Nazi messages during World War II, died of a heart attack on May 18 at home on Springs-Fireplace Road in Springs. He was 89 years old.

Representative Tim Bishop commended Mr. Collins’s wartime service on the floor of the House of Representatives last May, noting that he had received a medal and certificate of recognition from the British government for his service as a cryptologist.

Medal as Presented in Box. Photo by
JT Marlin. 

Mr. Collins, who was trained as a cryptologist by the Army, was chosen to escort the Allies’ most advanced code-breaking machine, the Dragon, to the cryptography center at Bletchley Park in England. He subsequently was credited with designing the machine’s successor, which is said to have hastened the defeat of the Third Reich.

“So secret was his work, his invaluable contributions were not recognized and made public until the 1990s,” Mr. Bishop said. His remarks were entered into the Congressional Record.

After the war, Mr. Collins went to work for the Western Electric Company, retaining the position for almost 44 years. He also worked as a supervisor for Trees Inc. from 1983 to 1990.

Medal from the British Prime Minister to Sgt. Collins. honoring his hitherto-secret contribution to the Second World War.  Photo by JTMarlin.

Medal from the British Prime Minister to Sgt. Collins. honoring his hitherto-secret contribution to the Second World War.  Photo by JTMarlin.

Mr. Collins was born on June 28, 1921, to Frank deMar Collins and the former Nina Hulse. He grew up here and graduated from East Hampton High School. He was married to Anne E. Miller, who survives. The couple had three sons, Capt. Thomas L. Collins II, Michael deMar Collins, and Stephen T. Collins, all of whom survive. He also is survived by six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

In his spare time, Mr. Collins enjoyed hunting and fishing and barbershop singing. He was a member of the V.F.W., which honored him with a salute last Thursday, the Cryptographic Society, and the Springs Presbyterian Church. The Rev. Tony Larson and the Rev. George Wilson officiated at a funeral service at the church on Saturday. Burial followed at Cedar Lawn Cemetery in East Hampton.

             References:
             East Hampton Star, Obituary, May 26, 2011; Time Traveler site, Bletchley Park page; 
             www.Boissevain.us site, Tom Collins Honors page; 
             Congressman Tim Bishop's speech on the floor of the House, June 9, 2010, 
             ...and as printed in the Congressional Record, html version and pdf version. 
            (A pre-print of the Congressional Record was presented to Sgt. Collins at a ceremony in Springs.
            It was read out after the Memorial Day parade in East Hampton.) 

Sgt. Tom Collins's Reminiscences. Comment (January 2, 2015) The new movie, The Imitation Game, puts the  focus of the Bletchley work on Alan Turing. It is easy to forget all the people who played a part in the success of the effort. One of them was Tom Collins.	Bletchley Park Cryptography Center
	Sgt. Thomas L. Collins in uniform.

VETS 2 | Pru's Programs

Prudential Financial's table at a veterans' job fair,
New Yorker Hotel, May 23, 2013. Photo by JT Marlin.

A veteran's getting hired shouldn't be a problem in a country with 27.3 million firms, right?

Well, 21.4 million of these firms are sole proprietorships with no employees.

That leaves 5.9 million firms, of which only 109,000 have more than 100 employees and only about 18,000 have more than 500 employees.

But of these 18,000 firms, how many are really eager to hire veterans? Also, how many of these firms are really appropriate for veterans to head for in expectation of a job?

One indicator is whether a company shows up at a veterans' job fair. I recently visited one in New York City and found that Newark-based Prudential Financial (Pru) had a booth there, one of maybe 25 firms seeking veterans for their payrolls.

Military Times recently examined 1,000 American companies to determine their openness to hiring veterans and providing support for them when they are hired. The publication reported on the top 53 companies and ranked Pru #27 (http://bit.ly/14V4bRQ).

Pru attained this high ranking because it has launched a variety of veterans’ initiatives:

• The VETalent work-study program for veterans, in partnership with the nonprofit Workforce Opportunity Services, 
• VETnet, a network of veteran employees of Prudential who can provide one another with mutual support and speak with a unified voice to the rest of the company and the outside community.
• Philanthropic grants to veterans service organizations.
• Original research on Veterans’ Employment Challenges, available here - and previously written up at this Blogspot (click or scroll down).

The strength of the company's veterans’ initiatives reflects Pru's commitment in assigning two senior employees to work exclusively on veterans’ affairs: 

• Ray Weeks, VP for Veterans Initiatives, who manages the company's internal veterans programs, and
• Steve Robinson, VP for External Veterans Affairs, who works on veterans' issues with outside organizations.

Pru hires veterans both because it's the right thing to do for those who have served and because it makes business sense. When asked not long ago how hiring veterans helps Pru as a company, Robinson said:

Veterans typically are the kind of people who - if you give them a mission and help them understand their role in its success - will go off and accomplish it without much supervision. Veterans are dedicated and have a demonstrated ability to work in arduous environments and take on complex tasks. The data also show that vets typically work harder, longer, don’t take as many sick days, and have the demonstrated ability to inculcate themselves into the culture and improve systems. 

For more on Pru's veterans initiatives, visit http://www.prudential.com/veterans.

VETS 1 | Justice Outreach

Manhattan's Midtown Community Court, 314 West 54th Street

The Midtown Community Court on West 54th Street has since 1993 targeted quality-of-life misdemeanor offenses, such as prostitution, illegal vending, graffiti, shoplifting, fare-beating and vandalism. The court was designed to address the fact that in most courts judges are forced to choose between a few days of jail time and no sentence at all. 

The Midtown Community Court, instead, sentences misdemeanor offenders to pay back the neighborhood through community service, while at the same time offering help with problems that may underlie criminal behavior. Midtown's sanctions and services include  community restitution projects, short-term psychoeducational groups, and long-term services such as drug treatment, mental health treatment, and trauma-focused psychotherapy.

Starting in April 2013, the Court has been working with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (Veterans Justice Outreach program) to screen and pair defendants who served in the military with support programs. The first two offenders in the program attended a group-counseling session mandated by the court as part of their sentences for having committed misdemeanor offenses. Defendants that served in the military and plead guilty to their charges can avoid jail terms by attending counseling sessions, paying a fine or performing community service, or some combination of these or other programs. 

Elise White, deputy director for the Midtown Community Court says:

There's a high level of overlap between folks who have come back from some kind of combat and post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, substance abuse, other kinds of disorders, other kinds of cognitive impairment. The idea is that the veterans court has a really good working knowledge of these issues and can help connect veterans to the kinds of services that will assist them in reintegrating into civilian life.

The program has already been implemented in courts in Brooklyn and Houston, Texas, where a veterans court became the focus of a "60 Minutes" segment in October 2012. Officials at the Midtown Community Court, including Judge Felicia Mennin, have taken part in multiple training sessions that cover everything from military jargon to the effects of traumatic brain injury and military sexual assault. For example, screeners learned not to ask whether a defendant was a veteran, but instead inquire whether he or she had served in the military:

People in the Vietnam era would generally label themselves as veterans, whereas the veterans who return now are not necessarily thinking of themselves as veterans. Many veterans aren't aware of the array of services available to them. 

Read more: http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20130405/midtown/veterans-initiative-unveiled-at-midtown-community-court#ixzz2RDoc2AGU. Court phone number: 646-264-1300.

May 18 - Honoring the Armed Forces

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Armed Forces Day is tomorrow, May 18. It is always on the third Saturday in May, just before Memorial Day, and is preceded by a week of activities. It is one of three days on which the United States honor those who have served their country in the armed forces.

It was first observed on May 20, 1950 with parades, receptions and air displays. President Harry S. Truman was determined to combine several separate holidays for the Army, Navy, Marine Corps,  Air Force and Coast Guard to establish a single holiday for citizens to thank their active-duty military and veterans for their service. On August 31, 1949, then Defense Secretary Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace the separate armed forces days (which are still celebrated by the separate services).

The single-day celebration reflects the unification of the Armed Forces under the Department of Defense. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy established Armed Forces Day as an official holiday, but since it falls on a Saturday it does not affect most offices. 

The longest city-sponsored Armed Forces Day Parade is held by Bremerton, WA, which celebrated the 64th parade in 2012. National Guard and Reserve units may celebrate Armed Forces Day/Week over any period in the month of May.

The differences among the three holidays celebrating the armed forces are largely in their origins:

• Armed Forces Day originated from the services' celebrations.
• Memorial Day dates back at least to 1866, when a memorial was first held in Waterloo, NY to honor dead Union soldiers.
• Veterans Day, November 11, was originally Armistice Day, celebrating the end of World War I.  It has special significance in Europe, where a whole generation of young men died in the trenches from a war that is increasingly described by historians as a diplomatic "sleepwalk" into conflict as various treaties came into effect broadening the scope of involvement. Approximately 250,000 Americans died in the war, a few volunteering before Wilson declared war on Germany in 1917. 

JOBS | Problem #1 for Vets–Post-Discharge Work

What is the greatest challenge veterans say they face when they return to civilian life? Finding a job.  That was the conclusion of a careful survey by Prudential of veterans’ perceptions and experiences transitioning from military to civilian life. Nearly 70 percent of them  said “finding a job” is their greatest challenge.

Based on a poll of 1,845 Post-9/11 and Gulf War II-era Veterans, the survey showed that 64 percent experienced a difficult transition to civilian life. Prudential conducted the study in partnership with the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America to better understand veterans’ experiences and perceptions around finding civilian careers.

Raymond Weeks, vice president for Veterans Initiatives at Prudential, said at the time of the release of the report:

With tens of thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans returning from service, the good news is that the nation is more focused than ever on helping veterans transition back into civilian careers. But with unemployment among veterans significantly higher than the population overall, particularly those under 30, the need to help get veterans on career paths has never been greater.

BLS Report on Veterans as of August 2012

The problems referred to by Mr. Weeks are shown in the annual Bureau of Labor Statistics report on the employment situation of veterans. 

The 2012 report shows a serious problem for veterans that served on active duty since 9/11, a cohort known as the Gulf War II era veterans. Unemployment among this group declined from the previous year but was still at a high 9.9 percent in 2012. The unemployment rate for all veterans was much lower, 7.0 percent.

One problem for Gulf War II vets is that 28 percent of them as of mid-2012 reported having a service-related disability, double the rate for all veterans. The report is based on the "household survey" of a sample of approximately 60,000 households. The monthly unemployment reports include questions relating to veterans in the surveyed households, so that the annual unemployment numbers are based on monthly data. However, the service-related disability questions are asked only in August of each year. 

Here are overall highlights of the 2012 survey: 
The unemployment rate for all male veterans declined by 1.4 percentage points to 6.9 percent in 2012. 
The rate for female veterans was little changed at 8.3 percent, higher than for men.
Veterans with a service-connected disability had an unemployment rate of 6.5 percent, comparable to veterans with no disability. 
One in three employed veterans with a service-connected disability worked in the public sector in August 2012, compared with one in five veterans with no disability. 
Gulf War-era II veterans who were current or past members of the reserve or National Guard had an unemployment rate of 7.2 percent in August 2012, approximately half the 13.7 percent rate for veterans who had not been members of the Reserve or National Guard. 
Gulf War-era II veterans who served in Iraq, Afghanistan, or both had an unemployment rate of 10.9 percent in August 2012, comparable to those who served elsewhere (11.3 percent).
In 2012, 21.2 million men and women in the civilian noninstitutional population ages 18 and over were veterans. 
Nearly half of them, 9.9 million people, served in World War II, the Korean War or the Vietnam War. 
In the survey, veterans are defined as men and women who have previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and who were civilians at the time the data were collected. 
Veterans are much more likely to be men and are significantly older than nonveterans. 
A total of 5.6 million veterans served during Gulf War era I (August 1990 to August 2001) or Gulf War era II (September 2001 forward). 
Another 5.7 million veterans served outside the designated wartime periods. 

Because age and other demographic differences affect labor force status, the next sections (unedited from the BLS release after the Gulf War era II section) focus on veterans by period of service. (See tables 1 and 2A.) 

Gulf War-Era II Veterans (Served Since 9-11)

In 2012, about 2.6 million of the nation's veterans had served during Gulf War era II. This is the group at greatest risk for unemployment. About 17 percent of these veterans were women, compared with 3 percent of veterans from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam era. Almost half of all Gulf War-era II veterans were between the ages of 25 and 34. (See tables 1 and 2A.) Among male Gulf War-era II veterans, the unemployment rate fell by 2.5 percentage points to a still-high 9.5 percent from 2011 to 2012. The unemployment rate for female veterans, at a high 12.5 percent in 2012, was little different from the prior year. (See table 1.) In 2012, the unemployment rate for male Gulf War-era II veterans age 18 to 24 was 20.0 percent, higher than the rate for nonveterans of the same age group (16.4 percent). The rate for male veterans age 25 to 34 (10.4 percent) was also higher than the rate for their nonveteran counterparts (8.1 percent). For older age groups, the unemployment rates were little different for Gulf War-era II veterans and nonveterans. (See table 2B.) Veterans of Gulf War era II and nonveterans had similar occupational profiles in 2012 after accounting for gender. About one-third of the employed men in both groups worked in management and professional occupations, a higher proportion than in any other major occupational group. Among employed women, about 50 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans and 42 percent of nonveterans worked in management and professional occupations. (See table 4.) A higher proportion of employed Gulf War-era II veterans worked in the public sector in 2012 (25 percent) than employed nonveterans (14 percent). The federal government employed 14 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans, compared with about 2 percent of employed nonveterans. (See table 5.) In August 2012, approximately 35 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans reported that they had served in Iraq, Afghanistan, or both. (Some veterans did not report their location of service.) These veterans had an unemployment rate of 10.9 percent, not statistically different from Gulf War-era II veterans who served elsewhere (11.3 percent). (See table 9.) 

Gulf War-Era I Veterans 

For the 3.0 million veterans who served during Gulf War era I (August 1990 to August 2001), the proportion that were women (16 percent in 2012) was similar to that of Gulf War-era II veterans. About 88 percent of Gulf War-era I veterans were age 35 and over, compared with 40 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans. (See tables 1 and 2A.) In 2012, the unemployment rates for male and female Gulf War-era I veterans were 5.6 and 8.0 percent, respectively, lower than the rates for their Gulf War-era II veteran counterparts (9.5 and 12.5 percent, respectively). These differences in the unemployment rates reflect, at least in part, the older age profile of veterans who served during Gulf War era I. Younger workers--whether veterans or nonveterans--are more likely to be unemployed than older workers. Unemployment rates of Gulf War-era I veterans were little different from their nonveteran counterparts of the same age and gender groups. (See tables 2B and 2C.) 

Veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam Era 

In 2012, about 9.9 million veterans were estimated to have served during World War II, the Korean War, or the Vietnam era. All of these veterans were at least 55 years old, and two-thirds were at least 65 years old. Nearly all (97 percent) of these veterans were men. In 2012, nearly one-third of male veterans of these wartime periods were in the labor force, and their unemployment rate was 6.4 percent. Male veterans of these wartime periods had lower labor force participation rates than did male nonveterans in the same age categories, while unemployment rates were similar. (See tables 1 and 2B.) 

Veterans of Other Service Periods 

In 2012, about 5.7 million veterans had served on active duty during "other service periods," mainly between the Korean War and the Vietnam era, and between the Vietnam era and Gulf War era I. Because these veterans served between the major wartime periods, which span several decades, this group is concentrated in two age ranges. About 41 percent of these veterans were 45 to 54 years old, and another 38 percent were 65 years and over. (See table 2A.) Nine in 10 veterans of other service periods were men. Among most age groups, male veterans of service periods between the designated wartime periods had unemployment rates that were little different than those of male nonveterans. (See tables 1 and 2B.) 

Veterans with a Service-Connected Disability 

In August 2012, about 3.0 million veterans, or 14 percent of the total, had a service-connected disability. (Some veterans did not report whether they had a service-connected disability.) Veterans with a service-connected disability are assigned a disability rating by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the U.S. Department of Defense. Ratings range from 0 to 100 percent, in increments of 10 percentage points, depending on the severity of the condition. (See table 6.) Among veterans with a service-connected disability, nearly 4 in 10 reported a disability rating of less than 30 percent, while about 3 in 10 had a rating of 60 percent or higher. In August 2012, veterans with a service-connected disability rating of less than 30 percent were more than twice as likely to be in the labor force as those with a rating of 60 percent or higher (58.1 and 26.1 percent, respectively). Among veterans who served during Gulf War era II, nearly 3 in 10 (712,000) reported having a service-connected disability. Of these, 70.3 percent were in the labor force in August 2012, compared with 87.0 percent of veterans from this period with no service-connected disability. Among Gulf War-era II veterans, the unemployment rate of those with a disability was 8.0 percent, not statistically different from those with no disability (12.5 percent). In August 2012, about 17 percent (532,000) of veterans who served during Gulf War era I reported a service-connected disability. Their labor force participation rate (72.6 percent) was lower than the rate for veterans from the era who did not have a disability (87.8 percent). Unemployment rates for Gulf War-era I veterans with (5.0 percent) and without (6.3 percent) service-connected disabilities were little different. Among the 1.3 million veterans with a service-connected disability from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam era, 21.1 percent were in the labor force in August 2012, compared with 32.2 percent of veterans from these periods who did not have a service-connected disability. The unemployment rate of veterans with a disability from these wartime periods was 6.1 percent, little different from their counterparts with no disability (5.5 percent). Veterans with a service-connected disability from other service periods had a labor force participation rate of 54.0 percent in August 2012, compared with 56.0 percent for veterans with no disability from these periods. Among veterans from other service periods, the unemployment rates of those with and without service-connected disabilities were similar--6.5 and 6.4 percent, respectively. Regardless of period of service, many veterans with a service-connected disability worked in the public sector. In August 2012, 34 percent of employed veterans with a disability worked in federal, state, or local government, compared with 19 percent of veterans with no disability and 14 percent of nonveterans. The federal government employed 19 percent of veterans with a disability, compared with 7 percent of veterans with no disability and 2 percent of employed nonveterans. (See table 7.) 

Reserve and National Guard Membership 

Nearly 30 percent of both Gulf War-era I and Gulf War-era II veterans were reported to be current or past members of the Reserve or National Guard. Among Gulf War-era II veterans, those who were current or past members of the Reserve or National Guard had an unemployment rate of 7.2 percent in August 2012, lower than the rate for those who had never been members (13.7 percent). Gulf War-era II veterans who were current or past members of the Reserve or National Guard had a higher labor force participation rate than those who had never been members (85.8 and 78.7 percent, respectively). For veterans of Gulf War-era I, labor force participation rates and unemployment rates were similar for members and nonmembers. (See table 8.) 

Tables of Data from the August 2012 BLS Report on Jobs for Veterans

• Employment Situation of Veterans Summary Table A. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 18 years and over by veteran status, period of service, and sex, 2011-2012 annual averages
• Employment Situation of Veterans Technical Note
• Table 1. Employment status of persons 18 years and over by veteran status, period of service, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, 2012 annual averages
• Table 2A. Employment status of persons 18 years and over by veteran status, age, and period of service, 2012 annual averages
• Table 2B. Employment status of men 18 years and over by veteran status, age, and period of service, 2012 annual averages
• Table 2C. Employment status of women 18 years and over by veteran status, age, and period of service, 2012 annual averages
• Table 3. Employment status of persons 25 years and over by veteran status, and educational attainment, 2012 annual averages
• Table 4. Employed persons 18 years and over by occupation, sex, veteran status, and period of service, 2012 annual averages
• Table 5. Employed persons 18 years and over by industry, class of worker, sex, veteran status, and period of service, 2012 annual averages
• Table 6. Employment status of veterans 18 years and over by presence of service-connected disability, reported disability rating, period of service, and sex, August 2012, not seasonally adjusted
• Table 7. Employed persons 18 years and over by veteran status, presence of service-connected disability, period of service, and class of worker, August 2012, not seasonally adjusted
• Table 8. Employment status of Gulf War era veterans by Reserve or National Guard status, August 2012, not seasonally adjusted
• Table 9. Employment status of Gulf War-era II veterans 18 years and over by location of service, August 2012, not seasonally adjusted