Help for Veterans Hit Hard by Joblessness - ERI Economic Research Institute

April 13, 2010 - PRLog -- Redmond, WA – The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported that March unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) for Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans is 14.7%, compared to the overall civilian unemployment rate of 10.0%.  The rate for male veterans – about 85% of the total -- is 14.8%, but the situation for female vets is not much better, with an unemployment rate of 14.2%.  

Why is it more difficult for those returning from military service to find jobs?  Of course, resume writing is important – the military skills of initiative, leadership, discipline, and ability to deal with stress may need some translation for civilian employers.  What’s more, the current economy has resulted in stiff competition for all jobs, so sending out endless resumes may not yield much success.  

The key to finding employment is matching skills to a specific job in a desired geographic area.  ERI Economic Research Institute is now offering free help to locate the best possibilities for relevant jobs.  

Veterans and other job seekers can use ERI’s Occupational Assessor™, a software program that creates a list of organizations that employ people in jobs the user can do.  It also provides links to online job postings, all within the desired commuting range.  Often used by Human Resources professionals to match job applicant abilities and interests to the requirements for actual jobs, the information generated can help focus the job search for returning veterans.  

Dr. David Thomsen, ERI’s founding director, says, “Job search is all about minimizing rejection. ERI's software identifies jobs that fit and local employers posting openings for these jobs, while providing contact names, emails, addresses, and phone numbers. Because we want to increase the odds of a successful job search for our returning veterans in these tough times, ERI is making this program available at no cost.”  

Here’s how to access the software and use it to find a job:

•   Download the free Job Search version of ERI’s Occupational Assessor at http://www.erieri.com;
•   Identify your education, achievements, skills, address, and any physical and/or mental limitations;
•   Review the jobs found nationally or locally for which you might qualify;
•   See who to contact at specific employers within commuting radius that most likely have the positions that match your qualifications; and
•   Review a list of job board postings by matched employer, area, and/or industry to see if any of these employers have a job available now.

Enhanced versions of the software for consultants and vocational experts are also available at: http://www.erieri.com.

# # #

ERI Economic Research Institute, Inc., is a leader in compensation and job content information. With data gathered from online surveys and an extensive survey library, ERI’s staff of researchers provides subscribers with assessments of salaries, relocation costs, cost-of-living comparisons, and executive compensation. ERI’s compensation databases contain over 20 years of collected data, covering the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and other countries throughout Europe. ERI subscribers include the American Red Cross, Alaska Airlines, Monster Worldwide, Aon Consulting, Honda, Amtrak, Adidas America, Inc., the IRS, the CIA, and the United Nations. ERI’s products include the Salary Assessor®, Geographic Assessor®, Relocation Assessor®, Executive Compensation Assessor®, and Nonprofit Comparables Assessor™ software and Occupational Assessor, eDOT®. For more information about ERI and its products, visit http://www.erieri.com.