Page 52 - Vets-Guide

VETERAN EMPLOYMENT IN THE U S continued
Veteran Employment
Tin the U.S.
he most recent data on veteran employment in the U S shows that there were approxi-
mately 21 6 million veterans in
the U S in 2011 (9 4 percent of
the population 18 and older)
Just over half of those veterans
were considered part of the labor
force, compared to 67 percent of
the nonveteran population e
percentage of veterans that were unemployed—8 3 percent— was slightly less than that of the general population
e 2011 Employment Situation of Veterans report provides more detail on veteran employment status, including employment status by age, sex, period of service, ethnicity, occupation, disability, and location of service e following summarize some of the highlights of the 2011 report e full report and data can be found at www bls gov
n e unemployment rate of veterans in 2011 (8 3 percent) was not statistically di erent from the rate in 2010 (8 7 percent) e rate for Gulf War-era II veterans (those who have served on active duty since September 2001) also was little di erent from a year earlier
n Young male veterans (those ages 18 to 24) who served during Gulf War era II had an unemployment rate of 29 1 percent in 2011, higher than that of young male nonveter- ans (17 6 percent)
n Among all veterans, those with a service-connected disability had an unemployment rate of 8 5 percent in August 2011, about the same as the rate for veterans with no disability (7 9 percent)
n One in three employed veterans with a service-connected disability worked in the public sector in August 2011, compared with about 1 in 5 veterans with no disability
n Gulf War-era II veterans who were current or past members of the Reserve or National Guard had an unemployment rate of 9 1 percent in August 2011, little di erent than the rate for those veterans who had not been members (11 0 percent)
n Gulf War-era II veterans who served in Iraq, Afghanistan, or both had an unemployment rate of 11 6 percent in August 2011
Veteran Employment in New Mexico
Using Census Bureau data for 2010, there were approximately 79,360 veterans in the labor force in New Mexico is represents about 8 8 percent of the total labor force between the ages of 16 and 64 Nearly half of these veterans were between the ages of 35 and 54 (16 percent were between
VETERAN EMPLOYMENT IN THE U.S., 2011 Labor Force Statstics for Persons 18 and Older
total population
Labor force
Labor force participation
209,278 140,424 67.1%
employed 128,140
Unemployed 12,284
Non-Veterans
Veterans
21,613 11,320 52.4% 10,375
945
(numbers in thousands)
Unemployment rate 8.7% 8.3%
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Table A: Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 18 years and over by veteran status, period of service, and sex, 2010-2011 annual averages.
52