Veterans are valuable and needed members of the American workforce.
The US Department of Labor wants to ensure that current and former military personnel have access to the career tools necessary to find good jobs with good wages and career pathways–especially after returning home from combat.
Ulster County Career Centers are located throughout every community in the United States and in almost every Ulster County Career Center there is a veteran’s representative. In our Kingston, NY location, Lisa Padilla-Hansen is the Local Veteran Employment Representative (LVER), and Edward Himko is the Disabled Veteran Outreach Program Specialist (DVOP) whose primary responsibilities for veterans include:
- Providing intensive services targeted at meeting the employment needs of disabled veterans and other veterans with significant barriers to employment
- Conducting outreach to businesses and engage in advocacy efforts with hiring executives and local businesses to increase employment opportunities for veterans, and encourage the hiring of veterans
- Encouraging the hiring of disabled veterans, facilitate and support veterans in gaining and retaining employment
- Maintaining cooperative working relationships with community organizations that provide complementary services and reciprocal referrals
- Providing to transitioning service members in need of intensive services, and to wounded, ill, or injured service members and their caregivers
- Job readiness assessments, interview preparation, development of an Individual Development Plan (IDP), and career guidance through group or individual counseling
- Providing recovery and employment assistance to wounded and injured service members receiving care at Department of Defense (DoD) military treatment facilities and Warrior Transition Units, with special consideration being given to economically or educationally disadvantaged veterans
- Providing intensive services to eligible veterans served through the Homeless Veterans’ Reintegration Program and Incarcerated Veterans’ Transition Program
- Devoting increased case time to each veteran, providing them with the intensive services required to mitigate their significant barriers to employment
- Career planning and counseling, skills assessment, referral to training and support services, and post-transition follow-up
- Providing participants with an individualized plan for mitigating employment barriers and easing the transition into the civilian workforce
Links for Veterans