September 16, 2010
Veterans Employment Initiative Shows ProgressWashington, D.C. – Today, the President’s Interagency Council on Veterans Employment was briefed by U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director John Berry, Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Scott Gould, and Department of Labor’s Assistant Secretary for Veteran’s Employment and Training, Ray Jefferson, to inform them that thousands more veterans have been hired by federal agencies since last November when President Barack Obama signed Executive Order 13518, Employment of Veterans in the Federal Government, and established the Veterans Employment Initiative. Also at the briefing, the council adopted a more aggressive new benchmark for veteran hiring among federal agencies.
More than 32,800 veterans have already been hired in the first six months by federal agencies, exceeding last years’ number at this time. During the briefing at the Department of Labor, which was attended by representatives from Veterans’ Service Organizations, veterans and those currently serving in the military, Gould, Jefferson, and Director Berry joined agency officials from throughout the federal government to announce a new benchmark and discuss the progress made.
“Our mission is simple: hire more veterans,” said Director Berry. “The strong sense of patriotism and public service held by members of our armed forces does not leave them when they exit from active duty. It benefits our government to utilize their skills and dedication to service.”
Veterans were 30.2% of total new hires during the first six months of FY 2010 compared to 26.8% in the same period in FY 2009. This is approximately a 3.5 percentage point change. That is 2,600 more veterans hired into the Federal Government in the first half of FY 2009 . . .
read more:
http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/09/16/more-than-32800-veterans-hired-during-first-half-of-fy2010/