[UPDATED] How to Attract Veterans to Your Organization

Updated on: January 19, 2022

Published on: Sep 18, 2020

This could be due to several reasons, such as the inability for veterans to find a position that matches their skills, challenges with service-related injuries, or simply navigating how to translate their military skills into the corporate environment.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, almost 200,000 service members enter the civilian workforce on a yearly basis. That indicates a large, but highly skilled workforce is available to be welcomed into numerous industries. While some employers still struggle to attract vets, there is some good news: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that veteran unemployment rates dropped from 5.3% in December 2020 to 3.2% in December 2021.

But even with this silver lining, the stats are still slightly above pre-pandemic numbers. Meaning, there continues to be a gap when it comes to bringing veterans into an organization.

So why are organizations and Federal Contractors having trouble hiring skilled veterans? Many organizations would like to hire qualified veterans to fill their job openings, though may not know how to go about attracting them. If your organization is among this group, we’ve put together some tips to help you begin.

Here are five ways you can attract more veterans to your organization.

1.) Make it known your organization has a desire to hire veterans. This may mean things like changing language and images used in marketing efforts to appeal to veterans. Include images of military personnel in marketing materials. Also, consider having your current veteran employees share their stories – through blogs, short videos, or social media, about their experience with your organization. Marketers call this “social proof” and it’s one of the most effective ways to authentically convey your organization's message.

2.) Get referrals from your veteran prospects and employees. The veteran community is tight-knit. By attracting and hiring veterans, you’ll find they’ll often spread the word your organization is “veteran-friendly.” Your best candidate is a qualified referral from a happy employee. Ask your current veteran team members if there are any other veterans that would be interested in talking with you about your organization’s open positions.

3.) Actively look for veterans with disabilities. There are many disabled veterans that are able and willing to accept the right offer of employment. Many of them may be currently receiving disability benefits from the government but prefer to be an active part of the workforce. There are several local, state, and federal agencies to help you hire veterans with disabilities.

Here are some great examples:

4.) Keep an open mind when interviewing veterans. First, don't hesitate to ask vets to clarify if you notice military terms, you're unclear on. Remember they were part of a very different culture for the last 4, 10, or even 20+ years. Always let the applicants know that your organization is very open to hiring and training veterans because of their military skills and experiences. Reinforce the fact that their skills are transferable to civilian jobs and your organization will do everything possible to help make the transition. You may also want to have a current military veteran employee speak with the applicant about their experience with your organization.

5.) Post jobs online to let veterans know you’re hiring. JobTarget is a great resource to utilize when trying to attract veterans. Our CompliancePost service is cost-effective and automatically sends your job post to leading job sites targeting veterans.

Implementing these tips into your recruitment strategy can help you appeal to the veteran community. Most veterans are motivated, willing and ready to work hard for your organization. They are just looking for an opportunity to show employers their abilities.

Below are just some of the job sites a posting will be distributed to:

HireHerosUSA.org
 
Jofdav.com (Job Opportunities for DisABLED Veterans)
 
RallyPoint.com
 
US Military Pipeline

Ready to start boosting your share of veteran hires? Get started with JobTarget’s CompliancePost today.

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