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CoverStory: 
In
Tight Economic Times, It's Increasingly Important
to Remember
Those Who Served and Need Our Help
By
Dr. Barbara Romberg,
Special to Veterans Advantage
Recently
some alarming statistics were reported in the media.
According to a story on
National Public Radio, one in five Veterans
returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are currently
unemployed, and one in four of those who are employed
make $22,000 or less annually. These numbers suggest
that returning Veterans and their families may
have an especially difficult time during the
current economic downturn.
Barbara V. Romberg, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical
psychologist and the founder and president
of Give an Hour |
Data compiled by the
Bureau for Labor Statistics (BLS) for 2007 indicate
that prior to the current crisis, the unemployment
rate for Veterans who served after September
2001 was 6.1 percent—compared
to 4.4 percent for non-veterans. The rate for 18-
to 24-year-old male Veterans who served after September
2001 was 11.2 percent—which is not statistically
dissimilar to the rate for young male non-veterans
(10.5 percent). The BLS also reported that the
unemployment rate for all Veterans was actually
lower than that for the rest of the workforce.
The rate was 3.8 percent for 2007, compared to
4.4 percent for non-veterans.
While
the overall unemployment rate for all Veterans
was lower than that of non-veterans, clearly the
men and women returning from the current conflicts
are not fairing as well as Veterans from prior
eras. We need not only to recruit creative and
dedicated men and women to our military, but also
to provide appropriate training and support so
that those who serve are able to remain gainfully
employed once they have been hired.
The BLS report also
suggests that the enforcement efforts of the
Department of Labor’s Uniformed
Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act
(USERRA) were effective in 2007. As of August 2007,
National Guard members or reservists who served
after September 2001 had an overall unemployment
rate of just 2.6. While this is excellent news,
we should not assume that the rate will be as low
for 2008 and beyond. As the economy slumps, many
small businesses that employed military personnel
prior to their deployment may no longer be in business
when troops return to their communities.
The Department of Labor
(DOL) is responding to the needs of our military
community in a number of ways. There is a now
a web site called America’s
Heroes at Work (www.americasheroesatwork.gov),
which focuses
on the employment challenges of returning service
members living with traumatic brain injury (TBI)
and/or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The
site is designed for employers and workforce development
professionals and provides information and tools
to help returning service members affected by TBI
and/or PTSD succeed in the workplace.
 There are also programs developing in the private
and nonprofit sector. Give an Hour is now partnering
with TecAccess to develop a program that will fill
the current gap in services available to employers
seeking to hire and train returning warriors. TecAccess
has already developed the DVET program, which was
designed to ensure that Veterans with disabilities
receive the support, job training, and recognition
they have earned through service and sacrifice.
Together, Give an Hour and TecAccess plan to expand
these services so that all Veterans receive the
training and support they need and deserve. In
addition, this program will provide support to
employers who want to hire returning warriors but
often feel ill-equipped to address the psychological
wounds of war that may affect successful job performance.
Several corporations have already expressed interest
in participating in this program.
In addition to facing
employment difficulties, returning troops and
their families may also feel the need to cut
back on mental health services. A recent article
in the Wall Street Journal indicates that due
to the economic crisis, many people are unable
to afford to begin or continue counseling services.
This is a serious situation for all Americans
who need mental health care, but it is especially
concerning for the men, women, and families who
must cope with the invisible wounds of war including
post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury.
Our returning warriors should not have to choose
between healing the wounds of war and putting food
on their family’s table. We must ensure that
those in need of mental health care are able to
access appropriate support easily.
Fortunately the mental
health community continues to step up to provide
for those who serve our country. Mental health
professionals continue to join Give an Hour to
offer their services. In an unprecedented event,
the major mental health associations—the
American Psychiatric Association, the American
Psychological Association, the National Association
of Social Workers, and the American Association
of Pastoral Counselors—will come together
to announce their support for Give an Hour at a
joint press event planned to coincide with Veterans
Day. Clearly, this country has the resources to
provide for the mental health of our troops. We
must maintain our determination and our focus in
order to successfully respond during this challenging
time.
Editors Note: Give an Hour is a strategic partner of Veterans Advantage. For more on our partnership, click here.
Veterans Advantage is also hosting a special online PTSD Transition Center for its members, with customized news and resources to help in this vital area.
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