The VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011

The VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 expanded job opportunities and training for veterans, and fixed several of the structural problems with veteran employment services.[1]

At the time the Act was passed, the unemployment rate for veterans of current wars was at 12 percent, compared with 9 percent for the general population.[2] This high unemployment rate was driven largely by widespread joblessness among veterans under age 25; 30 percent of veterans in this age group were unemployed at the time the bill was enacted.[3] In addition to suffering from high unemployment rates, veterans are overrepresented in the homeless population.[4] In 2010, 1 in 150 veterans were homeless.[5]

The VOW Act took a comprehensive approach to the problem of veteran unemployment by:

• Establishing tax credits of up to $5,600 for hiring veterans who have been looking for a job for more than six months; $2,400 for hiring veterans who have been unemployed for more than four weeks, but less than six months; and $9,600 for hiring veterans with service-connected disabilities who have been looking for a job for more than six months.[6]
• Making the Transition Assistance Program mandatory for service members moving on to civilian life to help them secure 21st century jobs through resume writing workshops and career counseling.[7]
• Providing 100,000 unemployed veterans of past wars with up to one year of additional Montgomery GI benefits to go towards education or training programs at community colleges or technical schools.[8]
• Providing disabled veterans with up to one year of additional vocational rehabilitation and employment benefits.[9]
• Allowing service members to begin the federal employment process prior to separation from the military, thereby facilitating a seamless transition from the military to jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Homeland Security, and other federal agencies in need of veteran employees.[10]
• Conducting a study of the gaps and overlaps between military jobs, skills, and vocational training and their civilian analogs in the private sector, thereby providing insight into how military training fits into the civilian job market.[11]

After making changes to the original House version of this bill, the Senate passed H.R. 674.[12] The House agreed with the Senates changes, and passed the amended bill.[13] The President signed the amended bill, which became Public Law 112-56.[14]

For more information

» Visit govtrack.us
Detailed information about the bill, including full text, floor speeches, sponsors and more

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Legend

= vote to fight poverty = vote against fighting poverty = no vote