Joint Base Charleston provides resources to lower veteran unemployment rates

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - For the first time in five years the military-connected community in Charleston will be able to participate in a hiring event at Joint Base Charleston.

Matt Sharman, Public Engagement Officer with Joint Base Charleston, says in the early 2000s they began to see a spike in veteran unemployment. Since then, they’ve started different initiatives to help lower those rates and better serve those looking for jobs.

Hiring Our Heroes is one of Joint Base Charleston’s initiatives where there will be more than 70 employers and over 90,000 jobs to be offered for people retiring from the military and even military spouses.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rates for both male and female veterans decreased in 2021.

Sharman says they’ve worked on helping veterans shape their skills to better switch to a new career field.

“We started to understand that it’s not as easy as reintegrating, we needed to prepare them, so they are ready for that next stage in life,” Sharman says.

Sharman says they’ve noticed that military spouse unemployment has been on the rise at 22%. Joint Base Charleston is looking to provide them with jobs that understand the military family, like nursing or remote customer service jobs.

“We started working on those transferable skills but we also worked on how we can improve some other skills that they want,” Sharman says.

The Hiring Our Heroes event is Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Joint Base Charleston.

Sharman says they will have resources available before interviewing like resume building, Linked In training, and expert panels.

After today’s event Joint Base Charleston says after the hiring event, they will continue to provide resources to those looking for employment.

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