State Chamber Update
Businesses across the state have stepped up their hiring of veterans and the results are positive and dramatic. Here is a recent commentary from the State Department of Labor that sheds light on the current employment status of veterans across the state.
Click here for the PDF.
“Out of the current resident population of 776,400 Delawareans*, 75,400 are veterans. Just under half, 35,000, are employed. Most of the rest are out of the labor force, mostly retired, as only 1,100 are actively seeking work. This gives veterans an unemployment rate of 3.0 percent, below the rate of 3.5 percent for nonveterans. Those who have left military service more recently have even lower unemployment rates. There are 9,700 Gulf War I era veterans (service from Aug. 1990 – Aug. 2001) living in DE, with 7,300 holding jobs. Their unemployment rate is also 3.0 percent. Gulf War II era veterans, those with service since Sept. 2001, have an even lower unemployment rate of 2.2 percent. There are 12,900 of these most recent veterans living in DE, and 10,600 are employed. Nationally, veterans don’t fare quite as well in the workforce as they do in Delaware. The national unemployment rate for all veterans is 3.4 percent; this is a little below the rate for nonveterans of 3.8 percent. Gulf War II era veterans across the US have an average unemployment rate of 3.9 percent, substantially above the corresponding DE rate of 2.2 percent.”
Just a few years ago, the unemployment for veterans was in the double digits. It was for that reason the State Chamber and New Castle County Chamber partnered to form the Joint Military Affairs Committee. The purpose of the committee is to highlight that the veteran population makes for great employees, and that many of the skills they learn in military life have a direct transfer to the private sector. The JMAC follows in the footsteps of the Central Delaware Chamber of Commerce and their successful programs supporting the Dover Air Force base and their personnel.
