The Labor Department reported Friday that the unemployment rate for Iraq- and Afghanistan-era veterans was 10.3 percent in March. That was slightly better than in March 2011 but higher than the current overall 8.2 percent national jobless rate.
For veterans of all generations, the March unemployment rate was 7.5 percent, according to the monthly employment situation report prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.Men separated from the service since September 2001 had a slightly lower jobless rate than female veterans of the same generation.
The March report appears to show that an unexplained drop in young veterans’ jobless rate in the Labor Department’s February report was a statistical fluke.The February data showed that the young veterans’ unemployment rate, which averaged 12.1 percent for 2011, had suddenly dropped to 7.6 percent — a decline far out of line with what veterans’ service organizations were reporting.
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America said in a survey of its membership released in March that 16.7 percent of its members were unemployed. Among the unemployed, 24 percent said they could not find a job that matched their skills or experience, and 11 percent said they could not find a job that matched their level of education.
Among those who are working, 33 percent said they were actively seeking other employment.
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