Another month, another record low for veterans unemployment.
The overall veterans jobless rate fell to a seven-year low in November and the rate for veterans from the Iraq- and Afghanistan-war era dropped below last month's record-low mark, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.
The news continues a positive trend in veterans employment, one that has seen even younger veterans finding jobs at a quicker pace than their civilian peers. In fall of 2014, the unemployment rate for that group was significantly higher than national jobless rates but has been below the U.S. average for three consecutive months now.
Overall veterans unemployment has been consistently below national rates for nearly six years. The 3.6 percent rate BLS found in November is the lowest monthly mark since October 2007, and reflects about 390,000 veterans unable to find work last month.
The rate for the youngest veterans was 4.2 percent, the lowest since BLS began tracking those numbers in 2008.
Officials have warned that the monthly veterans numbers are subject to fluctuations, due to smaller estimates than the national numbers. Still, over the last few years veterans have seen a steady drop in unemployment rates, thanks to an improving economy and targeted government programs designed to ease the transition from the military.
Iraq and Afghanistan veterans make up nearly 29 percent of the 10.4 million veterans in the U.S. workforce, the largest of any era. About 492,000 of those are younger women, who represent about 41 percent of all female veterans in the workforce.
Nationally, the overall unemployment rate in November was 5 percent, unchanged from the previous month. BLS officials estimated the economy added about 211,000 jobs in November, but just under 8 million Americans still struggled to find work.
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.
