The Role of Recruiters in Veteran Employment
In the recruitment field, our mandate includes not only identifying exceptional talent for our clients and keeping pace with industry trends, but also fostering a deep understanding of the unique needs of both employers and job seekers. However, we hold a broader responsibility that reaches beyond merely matching candidates with vacancies. As recruiters, we have the unique capacity to serve our communities by supporting underrepresented groups within the job market. One such group, particularly deserving of our attention, is the veteran community. This is where our veteran employment services come into play.
Understanding the Veteran Community
Before addressing the state of veteran employment and how our veteran employment services can intervene, it's crucial to acknowledge the unique character of the veteran community. Veterans come from varied military backgrounds, operational environments, and disciplines, making them a notably diverse group. Veterans bring a wealth of unique skills to the table. Their military service has fostered unparalleled resilience and discipline. They've learned to adapt quickly and show leadership, often under challenging circumstances. These valuable skills, which can provide a substantial boost to any professional setting, sometimes go unrecognized or underutilized in the civilian workforce due to a lack of understanding. These valuable skills, which can provide a substantial boost to any professional setting, sometimes go unrecognized or underutilized in the civilian workforce due to a lack of understanding.
The Rich Skillset of Veterans
Veterans bring a host of invaluable skillsets to the workforce. As previously explored in Blue Signal’s blog post, Why You Should Hire a Veteran in Your Next Open Role, veterans' experiences foster superior teamwork capabilities, leadership skills, and a tenacity that is often absent in employees without military training. They are trained to take on complex, high-stakes tasks, requiring creative problem-solving, quick thinking, and precise execution. Furthermore, veterans are typically highly adaptable, capable of performing under pressure, and understand the importance of completing a task to the best of their ability. These skills are not just beneficial but are often crucial in the corporate world.
The Current State of Veteran Employment
Despite the array of skills, rich experience, and diverse education they bring to the table, veterans often encounter difficulties when seeking full-time employment post-service. A study by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the veteran unemployment rate was 4.5% in 2020, higher than the rate for nonveterans. However, the reality is not so optimistic, as nearly 16% of veterans are underemployed, as revealed in a white paper titled “Challenges on the Home Front: Underemployment Hits Veterans Hard.” As recruiters offering veteran employment services, it is our calling to help bridge this gap, enabling veterans to find fulfilling employment that makes full use of their unique skills and capabilities.
How Recruiters Can Support the Veteran Community:
As recruiters, we are more than just a bridge between candidates and employers. We have the opportunity to impact veterans' lives by providing them with the tools and resources they need to transition into the civilian workforce successfully. We strive to understand their unique skills, facilitate their transition, promote their value to employers, and connect them with opportunities.
Leveraging Veteran Skillsets
As part of our veteran employment services, we strive to fully comprehend the unique skills and experiences veterans offer. By understanding various roles within the military, recognizing how these skills translate into civilian job requirements, and showcasing them effectively, we validate the value of their service. This allows us to match veterans with roles where their skills shine, and their experiences are seen as assets, not liabilities.
Facilitating the Transition from Military to Civilian Life
The transition from military service to civilian life presents a considerable challenge for many veterans. Our veteran employment services can play a pivotal role in easing this transition by offering much-needed resources and guidance. Helping veterans understand how their military skills translate to the civilian job market, providing advice on crafting resumes that effectively showcase their skills, or guiding them through the interview process – these are just some of the ways our veteran employment services can make a significant difference in their journey.
Promoting the Value of Hiring Veterans
Another powerful way our veteran employment services can support veterans is by educating employers about the tremendous benefits of hiring from this talent pool. Beyond the unique skills and experiences veterans bring, hiring them also opens up tax benefits under the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. As former Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, once said, "Veterans are a national asset, and they are to be used for the betterment of society." By fervently promoting the value of hiring veterans, we can play a part in shifting corporate perceptions and encouraging more companies to actively include veterans in their hiring processes.
Connecting Veterans with Opportunities
Veterans, particularly those with active security clearances, often have exclusive access to job opportunities not advertised publicly. Leveraging industry networks and knowledge allows us to uncover these hidden opportunities and provide veterans with a direct pathway to these roles. In doing so, we help align veterans with fulfilling career opportunities that fully utilize their unique skills and experiences.
Our Commitment to Veteran Employment Services
Supporting the veteran community in their job search isn't merely a business strategy—it's a moral obligation. By recognizing and understanding the unique challenges veterans face, coupled with the valuable skillsets they bring, Blue Signal plays a critical role in bridging the gap between military service and civilian employment. We are steadfastly committed to impacting veterans’ lives positively through our veteran employment services. We are eager to continue this essential work and invite other recruiters to join us in championing this worthy cause.
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