by Greg W Huffman

Created on: August 22, 2010   Last Updated: December 19, 2010

The transition from the military to civilian employment is difficult.  I will start out by saying that I have never seen a day of combat in my life.  With this said, it was still a hard transition for me.  I cannot imagine how bad it would be for a soldier whose has seen death and destruction.  The mental challenges brought on by seeing combat has to be a hard pill to swallow. 

In the military, you train to kill the enemy.  All of your daily training revolves around this type of ideology - kill or be killed. You are then taught the job that you entered the military for in the first place. Not every soldier will get a chance to kill an enemy soldier, but you are prepared to do it and do it efficiently. 

Soldiers are responsible for millions of dollars worth of equipment and the lives of other soldiers.  These qualities prepare soldiers for the civilian job sector.  They know how to lead and get the most out of each of their subordinates.  The military produces some of the finest men and women our country has to offer.

What goes wrong?  Some soldiers cannot turn off the killing when they return to civilian life.  After all, we sent them into harm's way and now we expect  them to be altar boys at the local church.  It is hard for them to come home and see their country divided on political issues and the war itself.  I cannot blame these vets for being angry.

The veterans who can handle civilian employment are disturbed to find out that employers do not want them - at least good paying employers.  These troops return home to average paying jobs after years of training and experience.  Recently, I reunited with my military friends.  They have told me some of their employment stories and I found that we all have average jobs.  Some of these people have college degrees and cannot a job.  Being a veteran does not gain you privilege in the civilian job market. 

I have come to one conclusion: A convicted felon has the same chance of getting a good paying job as a military veteran.  It's the sad truth.  Veterans have served their country proudly.  Maybe veterans should fall under affirmative action policies.  Jobs should have to hire minorities and veterans. 

Times are tough in our nation's economy.  I thank all of our veterans for their service.  I just wish employers were equally thankful to our veterans.

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