Sunday, March 26, 2006

From Front Line to Unemployment Line

U.S. UNEMPLOYMENT RATES OF VETERANS AND NON-VETERANS

Veterans have historically had a higher unemployment rate, but among 20- to 24-year-olds, that rate has been climbing dramatically since the beginning of the war in Iraq.
Chicago Sun-Times


From the front line to the unemployment line

BY
CHERYL L. REED Staff Reporter
Chicago Sun-Times
March 26, 2006


Mark Wirth Jr., a 21-year-old from Orland Park, figures the skills he learned as a combat Marine are too valuable to waste waiting tables.

But back in civilian life now after serving two tours in Iraq, Wirth isn't getting any offers for the jobs he wants, the jobs he thought the military had trained him to do -- in law enforcement or security consulting. He says the only job he has been offered, through the state's job bank, is as a truck driver.

"I know how to drive a Humvee," said Wirth, who's aiming for a job that pays at least $13 an hour. "But I don't know how to drive an 18-wheeler." (full story)

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