Paul Rieckhoff On Veteran Unemployment

Paul Rieckhoff On Veteran Unemployment Dear Sean, Across the country, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans came home to record unemployment levels in 2010 – as high as 30 percent in some states. How does your state stack up? Click on the map to find out. Earlier this year, IAVA launched our Combat to Career campaign to lower new veteran unemployment by Veterans Day 2011. The campaign has two parts: A public sector effort to work with Congress and local governments to build the right conditions for job creation; A private sector effort to create programs with companies to hire veterans. This week, two critical bipartisan bills are making their way through Congress to open doors for vets. On the Senate side, the Hiring Heroes Act is ready for a floor vote. And in the House, the VOW Act is also moving fast. We're pushing both parties to work together to score a big win for vets. And both bills will make a huge impact on combating veteran unemployment. But big name private companies are stepping up in a big way too. IAVA is aligning with companies nationwide to help them train and hire vets. We've partnered with Google to host resume workshops for vets. We've signed a partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to host five smart job fairs in the next year, connecting thousands of IAVA members with jobs. IAVA and Schwab have also partnered together to connect veterans with financial literacy resources and skills-building workshops. Continue to track our progress at our Combat to Career HQ. The fight has really just begun. Together, we can help America understand a key message: if you want to support our vets, hire them! Thank you for having our backs. Sincerely, Paul Paul Rieckhoff Founder and Executive Director Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA)