Employment Opportunities for Veterans and Other Military Service Members Available
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has kept the Civil War promise of Abraham Lincoln alive for many years, and it is a promise the organization intends to uphold for many years to come. What promise you might ask?
"To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan."
In his Second Inaugural Address, President Lincoln stood before the troops and made a historic pledge to all veterans -- then and now -- to honor the sacrifice these men, women and families have made for the greater good of their country. Through this oath, Lincoln effectively affirmed the country’s ongoing support to all veterans throughout their lifelong pursuits. Today, it is the mission of the department to protect, maintain and advocate for any and all needs of veterans.
The VA has a four-part mission, which includes honoring America's debt to the men and women whose patriotic service and sacrifice earned our freedom; giving vets assistance of the most meaningful kind, including medical and financial help; building and maintaining the great national cemeteries that perpetuate their memory; and providing ample employment opportunities in order to maintain a diverse, dedicated and highly skilled work force.
To ensure their courageous efforts are both honored and rewarded, the VA provides several benefits, including employment, education and medical options, to veterans. To begin, the VA believes veterans should not be overlooked, penalized or put under financial strain due to their enrollment in the Armed Forces. Therefore, the VA continuously campaigns for legislation, funding, financial breaks, employment opportunities and other benefits designed to safeguard all veterans’ financial well-being and competitive edge within the employment market. In addition, the VA offers extended services and support to disabled veterans.
Over the years, official policy has been put into place to protect these benefits, including the Veterans’ Preference Act of 1944. This act formally specified that veterans who are disabled or who have served on active duty in the Armed Forces are entitled to preference over others in hiring from competitive lists of eligible candidates and also in retention during reductions in force.
The Veterans’ Preference Act, however, has firm regulations that must be fulfilled and does not guarantee a job position. In addition, the laws surrounding the Veterans’ Preference Act are clear not to provide veterans with any type of deliberate favoritism when it comes to promotions, transfers, reassignments or reinstatements. All the processes surrounding veterans’ selection and management are placed under the control of The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which administers entitlement to veterans' preference in federal employment under title 5, United States Code, and oversees other statutory employment requirements in titles 5 and 38.
Since the passage of initial legislation, many revisions have been made to protect rights of veterans, including the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) -- a clarification and strengthening of the Veterans' Reemployment Rights (VRR) Statute. USERRA is designed to preserve and benefit veterans and Reserve members’ rights, as well as make major improvements toward the protection of service member rights by clarifying the law, improving enforcement mechanisms and adding federal government employees to those employees already eligible to receive Department of Labor assistance in processing claims. USERRA, more specifically, clarifies the rules and regulations for employment of veterans, reserves and other military professionals. For example, USERRA clearly states the cumulative length of time a military service member may take military leave from work without losing employment, as well as establishes opportunities for reemployment. In addition, USERRA enables military professionals to secure health and pension coverage plans.
One of the greatest resources available to veterans is access to the Veterans' Employment and Training Service, also known as VETS. According to the organization’s mission statement, VETS is designed “to provide veterans and transitioning service members with the resources and services to succeed in the 21st century workforce by maximizing their employment opportunities, protecting their employment rights and meeting labor-market demands with qualified veterans today.” Therefore, VETS heads up programs such as Veterans Employment Services, Veterans’ Transition Assistance Program and the Disabled Veterans Outreach Program.
The accessible resources to veterans are numerous; however, many of these benefits can be overlooked. Much can also be said about the online education opportunities available to veterans and other military professionals. To learn more, check out these accredited online education programs.