Hiring Vets
The Benefits of Hiring Veterans
Military veterans have many technical skills that make them invaluable. Nonetheless, through their time in the military, they’ve also picked up soft skills that can enhance your company’s culture. We’ll break down some of these skills and benefits so you can understand why hiring veterans is the right choice for your company.
- Proven leadership and leadership readiness
- Mission-focused approach to work
- Experience working in diverse teams and organizations
- Adaptable and immediate contributors
- Strong work ethics
- Strong performance under pressure
- Creative problem-solving
- Self-starter
- Integrity
Creating a Veteran Hiring Plan
Before beginning the vetting process for qualified veterans, you may want to develop a veteran hiring plan. Since their background tends to differ from a traditional candidate, the recruiting process your company has established may need some minor adjustments.
Some of the adjustments may include:
- Establishing your company as a veteran-friendly employer. You’ll want to strategically market that your company welcomes veterans.
- Creating a skill translation system. Veterans have plenty of soft skills that make them wonderful candidates, but it can be difficult to translate these skills to a civilian setting. Be sure to establish a system for understanding the skills they bring.
- Aligning your culture to their needs. Teamwork is a huge aspect of the military, so fostering a company culture that emphasizes this unity can help the transition feel more comfortable.
- Determining your onboarding process. With so many incredible skills, onboarding veterans may look a bit different. Decide on the onboarding process before extending the job offer to ensure a smooth transition.
Hiring Vets Resources
Facilitate Employing a Veteran with a RVEC
Regional Veterans' Employment Coordinators (RVECs)
- Engage with local, regional, and national employers
- Connect them with Federal, state, and local resources to facilitate veterans’ employment
DOL Employer Guide to Hiring Veterans (PDF)
The guide intends to:
- Provide accurate information about service member and veteran demographics
- Share federal, state and other resources for employers to facilitate veteran employment
- Make recommendations on how to attract, train, and retain veterans
National Labor Exchange: Post a Job
Veterans who find your job openings on the search results page will be taken directly to the job opening on your corporate website.
CareerOneStop
Hiring Toolkit
Customized solutions to your recruiting, hiring, and training needs.
Business Center
Your source for help hiring, training and retaining a strong workforce.
Recruit and Hire
Find tools and best practices for the critical steps in your hiring process and including diversity in your workforce.
DOL ETA: Building Registered Apprenticeship Programs (PDF)
This toolkit provides helpful steps and resources to start and register an apprenticeship program, from exploring the apprenticeship model as a workforce strategy to launching a new program.
VA.gov Vocational Rehab & Employment Programs
Explore what VA offers to make hiring or rehiring a Veteran with a service-connected disability that much easier.
