(Queens, NY) State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. (D-Queens) announced that legislation he sponsored (S.4402) to help employment-seeking veterans and potential employers better communicate about job skills earned in the military was recently signed into law by Governor Cuomo.
“Often, veterans who are looking for jobs, as well as the employers interviewing them, aren’t sure how to translate military titles and skills into civilian workforce terms,” said Addabbo, who serves as the ranking Democratic member of the Senate Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs. “This difficulty in understanding how certain types of military experience can carry over to the civilian labor force sometimes means that former servicemen and servicewomen lose out on good jobs and employers miss out on great veteran employees. That’s a shame for all involved and I am grateful that the governor, along with all of my colleagues in the State Senate and State Assembly, on both sides of the aisle, joined me in moving this legislation forward.”
Addabbo’s new law (Chapter 263 of the Laws of 2013) requires the State Division of Veteran’s Affairs to provide an Internet connection on its web site that is capable of translating military job titles and skills into civilian terms. The senator noted that this tool will be helpful to veterans and employers alike and will aid veterans in identifying open positions that are appropriate to their skills and experience. The new law goes into effect in three months, and Addabbo introduced the original legislation after the idea was suggested by a veteran constituent in his district.
“Unemployment among our returning servicemen and servicewomen is a big problem and a very serious concern on so many levels,” said Addabbo. “In many cases, the positions may be there for these veterans, but neither the job-seekers nor the job-providers can figure out how to translate the details of military resumes into successful job offers.” Addabbo said it was his belief that due to the training and military way of life, almost every veteran is a hard worker, with an excellent work ethic.
Addabbo pointed out that a 2007 study by Military.com, a web site that seeks to address the needs and concerns of veterans and active duty military personnel, found that 61 percent of employers surveyed felt that they did not have a complete understanding of the qualifications offered by former servicemen. A similar percentage of employers suggested that veterans need additional assistance in making a transition into the civilian job market.
The same study found that 81 percent of the returning veterans did not feel prepared to enter the job market, with 76 percent saying that they felt an inability to effectively translate their military skills to civilian terms.
“By having the State Division of Veterans Affairs provide easily accessible information to help breach this gap in understanding, we may be able to help more veterans find good jobs and help more employers find good workers,” said Addabbo. “We approved a number of initiatives this year to help our veterans, including tax incentives for employers who hire former servicemen and servicewomen, and this new law will complement these needed efforts.”
Veterans who would like to get an idea of how this job translation tool will work may wish to visit Military.com and look into the web site’s “Veteran Jobs” section. This part of the site offers not only military-friendly job listings, but a link to a “Military Skills Translator” tool similar to that proposed in Addabbo’s legislation. The link to this innovative job search tool can be found at: http://www.military.com/
