Senator Charles E. Schumer

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 9, 2011

SCHUMER REPORT REVEALS STAGGERING UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG RECENT VETERANS - SCHUMER ANNOUNCES NEW ONLINE CAMPAIGN TO HELP UNEMPLOYED VETS FIND JOBS AT UPSTATE NY BUSINESSES

The Employer Partnership Of The Armed Forces Website Is A Jobs Clearinghouse For Veterans, But Fewer Than 40 Upstate NY Businesses Are Currently Partnered With Site

Schumer Urges Local Businesses To Post Job Listings On Underused, But Effective, Monster.Com-Style Job Search Website For Veterans

Schumer Calls On Chambers Of Commerce To Make Member Businesses Aware Of Critical Tool For Unemployed Vets, Encourages Businesses To Sign Up

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer unveiled a new campaign to connect unemployed veterans from upstate New York with job listings at area businesses via the internet. The Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces website (http://www.employerpartnership.org/) serves as a job search site for our nation’s service members, veterans, and their family members. Currently, only 37 businesses from upstate New York are employer partners with the site, posting jobs listings that are available to area veterans. In an effort to boost this number and make upstate veterans aware of even more job openings, Schumer is sending a letter to Chambers of Commerce across New York State, urging them to make their member businesses aware of the site and encourage them to use this valuable resource when posting job listings online.

“This website for veterans seeking employment is a powerful but underutilized tool that has enormous potential to attack the troubling rate of unemployment among men and women who have served our country,” said Schumer. “Far too many upstate New Yorkers find themselves unemployed after they bravely served in uniform. That’s why today, I’m launching an aggressive campaign to encourage New York businesses to post their job listings on the Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces website. Upstate New York veterans have proven to be hard-working and effective leaders, and would make terrific additions to businesses in a wide range of sectors across the economy. By harnessing the power of the internet and expanding the pool of employers, we can match the jobs needs of our veterans with the hiring needs of local businesses.”

"With open arms, we would welcome additional businesses from upstate New York to the site as we work to help service members and veterans find good-paying jobs," said Lt. Col. Matthew Leonard, Strategic Community Officer for the Employer Partnership program. "The Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces program provides a connection to career opportunities for Military Service members, their families and veterans while also saving employers time and money. The program is free and open to all National Guard members and reservists, their families and veterans from all branches of service. At present the EP program has agreements with over 1,400 Employer Partners and it also offers one-on-one support through its geographically dispersed Program Support Managers. For these reasons the Employer Partnership stands apart from being merely another job search engine. We look forward to working with businesses throughout New York to create new economic opportunity for service members and veterans."

Just last week, the Department of Labor released an alarming new report stating that the national unemployment rate among 18 to 24 year-old veterans stands at 21.1%, four and a half points higher than unemployment for non-veterans in that same age range and over twice the unemployment rate for the overall population. That number also represents an increase of 7% in the unemployment rate for 18 to 24 year old veterans over the last three years. The overall unemployment rate for recent veterans stands at 12.5%, and has been much slower to decrease that the overall unemployment figure during the economic recovery. While the economy is slowly creating jobs and lowering the unemployment rate, unemployment continues to be a serious problem for our recent veterans.

In order to combat unemployment among our nation’s veterans and to spur economic opportunity in upstate New York, Senator Schumer is sending a letter to Chambers of Commerce throughout Upstate New York, encouraging them to make their member businesses aware of the site and to post job listings there for New York veterans who are searching for work.

The Employer Partnership Initiative was started in April of 2008 by Lt. Gen. Jack Stultz, chief of the Army Reserve. What began as an effort to connect Army Reserve members with potential employers is now open to all members of the U.S. Military and veterans. Currently, there are 1,400 Employer Partners registered with the site, including 95 of the Fortune 500 companies. Larger firms including GE and Wal-Mart join smaller companies, trade organizations, and governmental organizations in posting job listings on the site for veterans. Veterans can access the site through a state-of-the-art web portal that was launched on Veterans Day last year. The site provides access to approximately 600,000 job listings at a given time.

The jobs available on the website are targeted to match the specific needs and skills of the military community. They are generally tailored to attract applicants with skills developed during their military service in specific fields including medicine, transportation, logistics, law enforcement, civil affairs, engineering, human resources, information technology, communications, administration, intelligence, and security. Matching jobs requiring specific skills with applicants who have developed those skills through military service will help more veterans find good-paying, family-sustaining jobs.

Unfortunately, there are over 50,000 unemployed veterans living in Upstate New York. Here is a region-by-region breakdown of unemployed veterans across the state:

In the Capital Region, there are an estimated 7,651 unemployed veterans

In Western New York, there are an estimated 9,297 unemployed veterans

In the Rochester-Finger Lakes Region, there are an estimated 7,481 unemployed veterans

In the Southern Tier, there are an estimated 5,320 unemployed veterans

In Central New York, there are an estimated 6,695 unemployed veterans

In the Hudson Valley, there are an estimated 10,759 unemployed veterans

In the North Country, there are an estimated 4,216 unemployed veterans

Schumer’s letter to Upstate Chambers of Commerce is below:

Dear Chamber of Commerce,

            I write to solicit your help in addressing the high level of unemployment among New York’s population of recent veterans. It is troubling that unemployment among this group is substantially higher than the rest of the population, particularly given their unique skills and experiences. After they return from their patriotic duty, it is our duty to do all we can to help veterans integrate back into the community. In that regard, I ask you and your members to consider taking advantage of a great tool for connecting your employment openings with qualified veterans.

            The Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces is a valuable resource which helps employers and veterans find job matches.   The Partnership is operated with public and private support, and includes a state-of-the-art web portal which allows employers and applicants to search one another based on specific skills and other criteria. The portal is an outstanding tool for reaching thousands of qualified veterans with top notch training and experience in fields such as medicine, transportation, logistics, law enforcement, civil affairs, engineering, human resources, information technology, communications, administration, intelligence, and security. The partnership’s website is www.employerpartnership.org, where employers can sign up to join over 1,400 other members who are posting job openings there today. For more information, they can also be reached at 1 (877) 450-4473.

            Our veterans represent a strong group of highly trained, experienced, and dedicated citizens who have bravely served our nation. As they leave the service, they have great contributions to offer the private sector. Please help to ensure that they are afforded an opportunity to contribute. Ask your members to reach out to veterans – through the Partnership website or otherwise, when you are looking for qualified job candidates.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Schumer
United States Senate