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WASHINGTON, April 14, 2009 – Navigating the federal job application process can be mindboggling, but veterans can have a personal guide thanks to a new Military Order of the Purple Heart Web site. MOPH offers veterans its new Vetsjobs.net site as the answer to the puzzle, given that the Labor Department estimates 100,000 new federal jobs will open in the federal sector, the group’s national veteran employment officer said. “There are lots of places that you can go to get information. However, this is one place that you can gather enough information to intelligently apply for a federal job,”...

Nearly 20 percent of young military vets are unemployed -- twice the national average for young civilians. I spoke about why with Tammy Duckworth, director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs, who said that the same extended tours of duty that wreak havoc on the personal lives of soldiers and their families can make employers wary about hiring them. "Especially the guardsmen and reservists, because they get deployed so often," said Duckworth. "Some Marines Corps units in Southern Illinois have been called up four times. Can you imagine what that does for an employer?" Then there is -- and...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Pentagon said Wednesday it has created a new Web site to help veterans who face difficulty returning to their old jobs or finding new ones after deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. Michael Dominguez, principal deputy under secretary of Defense, said the program, dubbed TurboTAP, seeks to improve on its current Transition Assistance Program by letting National Guard and Reserve servicemembers get job information, build a resume online and do a job search all in one place. In addition, veterans would be able to create a customized transition plan from military to civilian life. They also would...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 28, 2006 – Severely injured servicemembers and their spouses are seeing doors open to meaningful civilian careers, thanks to a partnership between the Defense Department and the private sector. The Office of the Secretary of Defense, DoD’s Military Severely Injured Center and Military.com -- a private organization that provides information and serves as a networking hub for current and former military people, defense workers and their families – are co-sponsors of “Hiring Heroes.” Hiring Heroes helps connect servicemembers with DoD and other federal agencies, as well as civilian companies, with significant positions to fill. But it’s not...

4/7/2006 - WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- Airmen now have increased eligibility for veterans’ preference when released or discharged from active duty, Office of Personnel Management officials here wrote in a recently released memo. More servicemembers are now eligible for veterans’ preference when applying for government civilian jobs. Pres. George W. Bush signed into law the Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2006, which contained two provisions that broadened the definition of a “veteran” and clarified eligibility for those released or discharged from active duty, said the statement. The first provision gives preference to those who have served on active duty for a...

Hire A Hero By Oliver North March 31, 2006 America's soldiers, sailors, airmen, Guardsmen and Marines are in near-constant combat against brutal, committed adversaries. Yet, in nine trips to Iraq and Afghanistan covering U.S. military operations for FOX News since 2001, I've never seen our troops bested in battle. But it turns out that not all the fights are on foreign soil, and sometimes the outcome depends on unusual allies. Last month, on March 6, the Supreme Court handed our Armed Forces a major victory when it ruled in Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights that colleges accepting...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 15, 2005 – In 1957, Jack Taylor, a decorated World War II fighter pilot, founded a car rental company and named it after the USS Enterprise, one of the carriers off which he flew. Today, Enterprise Rent-a-Car maintains its rich military history by providing unique support to its employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve. Enterprise was one of 15 employers to receive the 2005 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award in October for its policies and programs that assist National Guard and Reserve employees and their families. The company has about 500 employees who...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 15, 2005 – A program designed to help wounded veterans find meaningful civilian jobs is paying off by enabling some to use their military expertise to ensure their former comrades are getting the quality weaponry they need in combat. Since becoming a partner in the Defense Department's "Hire a Hero" program last summer, the Defense Contract Management Agency has hired five permanent employees as well as two volunteers who lend their talents while undergoing rehabilitation, Nancy Adams, the agency's program director, told the American Forces Press Service. DoD established the program last December to encourage agencies to develop...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4, 2005 – The New York Times, one of the country's leading daily newspapers, joined thousands of employers nationwide demonstrating support for the National Guard and Reserve employees here Nov. 3. Guy "Doc" Holliday, vice president for advertising, represented the Times in making an official declaration of support for the reserve components and their role in the nation's defense during a ceremony at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan. Holliday, an Army Reserve major who was mobilized for more than a year as part of the war on terror, signed a statement of support for the...

NEW YORK, Nov. 4, 2005 – Employers anxious to tap into the skills and discipline military service instills in its members converged with thousands of job-seeking veterans here at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center Nov. 3 during the first Salute Our Heroes Veterans Job Fair and Career Expo. The fair brought together an estimated 7,000 veterans, many recently returned from duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, and 87 private-sector, government and union employers hoping to entice current and former servicemembers into their workforces. Guy "Doc" Holliday, vice president for advertising for The New York Times, which hosted the event, said...