WASHINGTON — Sen. Patty Murray on Tuesday introduced what she said
was the nation’s first comprehensive legislation to address
disproportionately high joblessness among veterans, whose military
credentials they say can be an impediment to employment.
Murray, a senior member of the Senate Veterans Affiars Committee
whose father was a disabled World War II veteran, said the bill aims to
lower unemployment rates by helping vets both get trained for new jobs
as well as start their own businesses.
Specifically, the Veterans Employment Act of 2010 would create a
program within the Small Business Administration to provide start-up
money and training for would-be entrepreneurs. It also would expand the
post 9/11 GI Bill to allow veterans to receive tuition help not only for
colleages but for worker training or apprenticeship programs.
Murray said people who leave military service face many obstacles to
finding work in civilian life. They include stigma against those who
suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and the difficulty of
convincing prospective employers that military experience is relevant
and useful.
“One in five of our dedicated veterans…come home and can’t find a
job,” Murray said. “These veterans have been made to stand in the back
of the (employment) line.
Murray said she did not have price tag for the bill, which is
awaiting a cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office. The
legislation is co-sponsored by Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen.
Mark Begich of Alaska, both Democrats, as well as Republican Lisa
Murkowski of Alaska.
Jason Hansman of Seattle, an Iraq veteran, said he was out of work
for five months after returning from deployment training. Hansman said
he could not get a job even as a cashier at Trader Joe’s despite holding
a degree in political science from University of Washington. Hansman
blamed that in part on employers who did not put any value in his
eight-year service in the Army Reserves.
– Seattle Times
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