The stories keep coming—relentlessly. Daily in the national media—on TV, radio, online and on the printed page—are heartrending tales of broken young veterans returning from the recent wars, and their heroic caregivers. Young people, burdened by all types of injuries, seen and unseen--blown off limbs, PTSD, traumatic brain injury, substance abuse, and mental illness dominate the national discussion regarding those who most recently have served. The terrible shootings at Ft. Hood and the Washington Navy Yard only reinforce how damaged these veterans must be.
And, surely, without a doubt, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have taken a terrible toll on the 1% of our citizenry who have stepped forward to defend the other 99% of our national population. According to a report published by the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University, in the 13 years since the 9/11 attacks our nation’s military has been deployed and in a state of war, more than 2.5 million young men and women have volunteered to serve and deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan—and, as of May 2014, more than 6,668 have been killed and over 51,785 have been physically wounded.
As a soldier, who fought in the Vietnam War, I know all too well the devastating effects that war can have on the body, mind, and most importantly, the soul.
But, I think this unrelenting media attention on the pathology of the veteran is having a long term negative affect on those young veterans who served in these conflicts, and who were largely unscathed by these wars, and who just want to return to their communities and get a job.
In fact, while it is perceived that veterans are “damaged goods,” exactly the opposite is true.
For instance, a recent Gallup-Healthways-Well-Being Index survey finds that the active-duty and veteran populations are more emotionally resilient than their civilian counterparts. It concludes that, “Although many veterans face very serious and unique mental health challenges that does not seem to be the experience of most of the veteran community, which in fact fares better than working civilians in many aspects of emotional well-being.”
In fact, it is widely acknowledged by companies that actually employ veterans that these former military personnel bring many, many valuable skills to the workplace—discipline, a commitment to accomplishing the mission, ability to work with and lead a team, and most importantly in this rapidly changing business environment, the flexibility and adaptability to pivot from established business plans that aren't working to those that do on a moment's notice.
But, you'd never know that from the majority of the newscasts on veterans—or unemployment reports that show the unemployment rate for post 9/11 veterans at 8.1% versus 6.1% for the general public. You would think that every veteran who has served in these wars was mentally unbalanced in some way. Some are—but, the vast majority aren't.
And, that's the problem—one that needs an aggressive and comprehensive push to change public, and more important, employer perception of the post 9/11 workforce. The need for such a public service marketing campaign is glaring.
Yes, some veteran employment challenges can be explained by a mismatch of skills sought by employers and veterans who lack those skills, or have difficulty articulating the skills that they gained in the military in a way that potential civilians can understand.
But, 28% of the veterans surveyed by Edelman Berland, a highly respected global market research firm, state that they “feel that being a veteran makes it more difficult to find employment”, while 23% say that “when speaking to potential employers, I do not get the respect that I deserve.” Significantly, 16% say that “I find that I have to defend myself against psychological or emotional trauma accusations.”
These aren't just perceptions. The most recent Monster Worldwide, Inc. Veteran Talent Index, published in May, 2014, stated that 20% of those employers surveyed had major concerns about post 9/11 vets Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and how that might affect young veterans on the job.
So, how do we change the narrative?
How do we move the discussion from “veterans are damaged goods” to “veterans have the leadership and work skills that employers should value and make use of in today's rapidly changing business environment?” How do we ensure that the roughly 80% of veterans who have returned from the recent wars, who are not impaired in any way--and, the millions more who will follow them in the years to come--will be snapped up by employers as valuable members of their organizations?
No question it is up to the individual veteran--no matter what their circumstances--to demonstrate to employers and community alike the tremendous leadership and work skills that they learned during their term of service.
But, that's too narrow. That type of thinking will never move the needle on the national discussion to where it needs to go-- a national dialogue on the valuable skills that veterans bring to the workplace, and why employers should capitalize on these skills.
What's needed is a national media campaign that showcases successful veterans in the workplace, and the valuable skills that they learned in the military and bring to the job.
Such a campaign could be patterned after the Travel Industry Recovery Coalition's highly successful campaign to restore travelers' confidence in safe and secure travel after the devastating 9/11 attacks, or BP's successful campaign to bring people back to the Gulf after the oil spill.
The campaign could be spearheaded by national media companies, perhaps with an organization like the Walt Disney Company, which already has a substantial commitment to veterans with their “Heroes Work Here” and Veterans Institute, taking the lead. Additional support could be provided by companies that demonstrate a commitment to veterans, such as JP Morgan Chase, Allstate, Verizon, Deloitte, KKR and Capital One, to name but a few. And, companies led by highly successful veterans, like 7-Eleven, Johnson & Johnson, Federal Express, and even Procter & Gamble, which was recently headed by Robert McDonald, the current VA Secretary, could pitch in, as well.
These companies—and companies like them—could lead and fund a major national media campaign to substantially change the narrative of how our younger veterans are viewed by employers. They have the fire power to entirely re-cast, in a positive way, the national discussion regarding veteran employment.
General Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was recently quoted as saying, “There are those (veterans) that are very much in need of help, but the vast majority—are less in need of a handout than simply a handshake, an opportunity.”
And, a well-led and well-funded national media campaign that showcases successful veterans in the workplace could go a long way in giving those returning veterans who need it that opportunity, which they so richly deserve.
