Vets: Work in civilian world hard to find

Along with 1,300 other military veterans, Marcus Caruso, 27, strolled the aisles of a state-run job fair for veterans in Brooklyn Center last month looking for work.

A convoy truck commander and gunner during his year in Iraq, Caruso has been job hunting since July. "I've been looking every single day. Real job opportunities aren't out there from what I can see," he said.

While the nation will honor its veterans Tuesday, the jobs market is proving to have little respect for national service.

Guard members who had jobs when they left for Iraq still have them when they return. But for younger vets who were unemployed when they enlisted, finding a civilian job after returning home has often been difficult. And it is worse for laid-off Vietnam-era vets, who say their years in the service provides little advantage in getting jobs today.

"I've got résumés out to every company in Minnesota," said Bellis Wingo, 55, who lives in St. Paul. Wingo, who has been jobless since February, was one of about 20 job hunters hunched over computers recently at a Minnesota Workforce Center in St. Paul, operated by the state Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Wingo, an Air Force veteran from the 1970s, found four companies listing jobs for which he might be qualified. He sent in his résumé by e-mail. "I'm angry," he said. "I've always worked. I've worked since I was 14 years old."

More Minnesotans -- vets and non-vets -- were looking for jobs in August and September than at any time in the past 25 years, said Dave Senf, a labor market analyst for the state. That is partly offset by a considerably larger job market than existed 25 years ago.

The monthly data are not adjusted for seasonal variations, so they are less reliable than an annual veteran employment report that won't come out until April, Walker said. Nonetheless, it's not surprising that vets are having trouble finding work, he said, given the national unemployment rate.

400 apply for one job

"It's much more difficult now," said Neil Krenz, a disabled vets outreach program representative at a Workforce Center in St. Paul. "There aren't as many openings. If there are layoffs, employers aren't hiring back or they are hiring at a much lower wage."

Hector Matascastillo, a disabled vets outreach program representative, works at centers in North St. Paul and Washington County. He says that the problem has worsened in the past three months and that some employers have 400 applicants for one job.

"There are jobs out there, but it is getting restrictive," he says. "A lot of the big companies are going toward temp agencies to handle their staffing. They don't have to worry about the layoffs anymore."

Vets first? Not necessarily

A lot of companies are vet friendly, but only federal and state government agencies are required to take account of a veteran's service when hiring, says Lou Huether, project supervisor with Jobs for Veterans. Some companies with federal contracts are required to hire a certain percentage of veterans, he says, but among other firms "many don't give them extra consideration."

Target Corp. does not have a preferential hiring policy for veterans, says spokesperson Kari Thompson. But she said the company welcomes "their leadership experience and actively recruits them at ... career fairs."

Caruso, the Iraq war veteran, is married with a 13-month-old daughter. His family lives at his mother-in-law's home in Woodbury.

With supervisory skills in the Army, Caruso had hoped to land a management job, but he has submitted 50 applications with no luck. He is now looking for any job that will support his family. "I'm willing to do just about anything besides telemarketing," he said.

"I used to think it would be easy to get a job," said Yourith Chak, 22, of Savage. "They're always bragging [in the Army] that they are hiring veterans. I go to sleep, and when morning comes I am jobless. I hate that."

Education: An option for some

James Finley, director of veterans employment programs with the state Department of Employment and Economic Development, says many returning Iraq vets are taking advantage of the paid educational opportunities afforded them. "About 60 percent of the 5,000 Minnesota National Guard troops that went through Camp McCoy ... in 2007 [after returning from Iraq], said they had school plans," he said.

Jobless workers who are older have a more difficult time these days, and likewise some vets from the Vietnam era and the 1970s are facing the longest job hunts, said Tamika Brewer, with Jobs for Veterans.

Leon Ramminger, 54, of Maple Grove was in the Army from 1973 to 1976. A carpenter, he lost his job when home building took a nosedive.