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Lawmakers seek more job opportunities for veterans

House Photography file photo
House Photography file photo

Hiring veterans is becoming a trend in both Minnesota’s public and private sectors, where state officials believe they have made significant inroads in recent years and hope to continue adding veterans to the state’s robust economy.

There are an estimated 331,000 veterans living in Minnesota, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs – about 16 percent of the state’s population – but the unemployment rate among veterans (3.8 percent) here is a tick lower than the rest of the state’s workforce (3.9 percent). Members of Gov. Mark Dayton’s administration on Monday told the House Veterans Affairs Division that they’ve made hiring veterans, among other groups, a priority.

In the public sector, Minnesota Management and Budget Deputy Commissioner Stanley Hudson said 8.3 percent of full-time state workers – some 3,000 people – identify as former military members. It’s part of Dayton’s inclusion and diversity project that looks for increasing government employment for “all communities.”

“Veterans are invaluable,” Hudson said. “They have invaluable skill sets they learn during their service.”

One of the biggest accomplishments within state government, Hudson said, was with the Department of Natural Resources becoming a so-called “yellow ribbon agency.” As part of the federal Yellow Ribbon Program, which targets post-military training and education for veterans with the Post-9/11 GI Bill, Hudson said the goal is to make the entire state a “Yellow Ribbon” employer.

Dayton has declared July “Hire a Veteran Month” the past few years.

“Our message has been very, very clear: We want to have veterans because of their skills, their expertise and their work ethics,” Hudson said. “We, as a large employer, need to hire veterans.”

Hudson said 4,093 veterans applied for jobs with the state of Minnesota for Fiscal Year 2017. More than 500 were hired.

The Department of Employment and Economic Development boasts a number of programs encouraging private-sector businesses to hire veterans. One priority, according to Jim Finley, DEED’s veterans employment programs director, is targeting underserved veterans populations like women, Native Americans and ex-offenders who face “significant barriers” in hiring or in retaining employment.

DEED also hosts veterans-only career fairs, conducts in-depth assessments and works with resumes, helps with career guidance and refers veterans for jobs and training.

“In Minnesota, hiring veterans is not good will,” Finley said, “It’s good business.”

The Legislature is working on increasing veteran employment and apprenticeship opportunities, too.

Through bills like HF1793, sponsored by Rep. Mike Sundin (DFL-Esko), or HF1638, sponsored by Rep. Nolan West (R-Blaine), the Department of Labor and Industry would have $400,000 for the Helmets to Hardhats program. Rep. John Poston (R-Lake Shore) sponsors HF1318, which would create veterans preference in hiring in the legislative and judicial branches – something currently limited to the administration.

Rep. Keith Franke (R-St. Paul Park) sponsors two bills, HF270 and HF2541, which would give veteran-hiring employers a tax credit and would expand Minnesota’s GI Bill program, respectively.

Finley, with DEED, said for some veterans, being hired isn’t simply about getting paid, “it’s about mission.”

 


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