An Improving Economy Bodes Well for Veteran Employment

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The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

With the pandemic easing in the U.S., the economy seems to be moving in the right direction. And  while job numbers as a whole are also improving, it’s especially gratifying to see the encouraging  employment data for a vital but sometimes overlooked segment of our workforce— veterans. As of  May 2021, the unemployment rate for U.S. Armed Forces veterans was down to 4.4%, from 5.3% in  April, according to the U.S. Department of Labor (1). Comparatively, the May unemployment rate for  nonveterans was also down, but it remains more than a full percentage point higher than the  veteran unemployment rate, at 5.8%.  

Of course, veterans were not immune to the effects of COVID-19 on the economy. Anything but. A  news release entitled the Employment Situation of Veterans (2) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor  Statistics confirms that 2020 unemployment rates for both male and female veterans increased  during the pandemic to 6.5% and 6.7% respectively. 

Fortunately, for veterans who are unemployed or are looking for better jobs, the coming months  offer encouraging signs as the job market continues to rebound. In fact, many companies are now  having trouble filling open positions, and the dearth of talent is often cited by companies as an  obstacle to growth. One tactic they might consider is tapping the potential of veterans.  

Some companies are doing just that, and a few are even hiring veterans as part of a corporate  priority. A few of these companies include household names such as Capital One Financial Corp. COF, Home Depot Inc. HD and AT&T Inc. T, and these are the top 10  holdings:  

Holdings are as of 6/30/2021 and subject to change without notice. 

Helping our veterans seems like the right thing to do, and it even makes good business sense  given the values, diversity, and experience that veterans can offer corporate employers. For those  investors who think that’s a good idea—both on principle and for its business savvy— there is a  way to allocate to companies with some of the best hiring practices and programs for veterans.  The VictoryShares Top Veteran Employers ETF (VTRN), which tracks the Veterans Select Index,  is an exchange-traded fund that provides an opportunity to invest in companies that are  proactively recruiting, employing and developing veteran talent in the workplace. The proprietary  Veterans Select Index “measures the performance of publicly traded companies that support U.S.  military veterans through employment.” In addition to hiring practices, this index also takes into  account various aspects of the overall company environment toward veterans, including culture,  policies, and accommodations toward veterans and their families.  

(1): https://www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/latest-numbers 

(2): https://www.bls.gov/news.release/vet.nr0.htm 

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