Military Veterans Share their Stories of Barriers to Good Jobs with U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis

Several dozen U.S. military veterans testified at a Town Hall on Good Jobs at Union Station in Downtown on Friday to bring to light the many issues facing veterans when trying to re-enter the workforce. Organized by the Veterans Committee of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, the town hall was attended by over 700 veterans, community members and elected leaders including U.S. Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, Speaker of the California State Assembly, Karen Bass and L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas.

"It's truly a shame when Veterans who fought to preserve our freedom, who fought to preserve our right to the American Dream, can't reach what they fought so to hard to preserve as members of our armed forces," said Maria Elena Durazo, Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. "There is no greater causality than that. We should be ashamed if we think we can sit back and continue to let it happen."

Many of the veterans who testified noted issues such as being penalized for service time overseas, unable to organize to join a union, war time disabilities, and lack of recognition by employers for skills gained in the service as barriers to them finding good middle class jobs. Among the other topics discussed were an overview of the current state of veterans, current public and private programs available to facilitate their re-entry into the workforce and the barriers often faced by them when trying to access good jobs after their return home from military service.

"I'm clearly disabled, but there has to be a way, an option for me to be able to go back to my same employer and do some type of work that is equivalent in pay and benefits to what I had before I left for war," said Army Sergeant Major Jesse Acosta, an Iraqi War Veteran who lost his eyesight when he was hit by a bomb. "Let me be clear. I am under no illusion, nor are the thousands of disabled veterans that come home from Iraq. We understand that in most cases, we can't go back to the same jobs we had before. But something needs to be done to ensure that we too have a place in the workforce when we come home from war - a place with a good middle class job."

The town hall was co-sponsored by a variety of American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts including -American G.I. Forum of California, Angel City American Legion Post 677, National Veterans Foundation, U.S. Vets, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare and Volunteers of America of Los Angeles.

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