WHEREAS:

            Less than one percent of the population of the United States is on active duty or in the reserves at any given time.  These men and women are the true “one percent.”  They are our heroes and deserve our support while serving and afterwards; and

WHEREAS:

            AFSCME has a unique and important bond with our nation’s veterans. Many of our members and leaders are veterans themselves or have family members who have served. AFSCME members also provide care and services for our veterans when they return home. AFSCME members administer benefits and provide direct care in veterans’ service offices and veterans’ hospitals and homes around the country; and

WHEREAS:

            Funding for these critical services is being cut, leaving workers overwhelmed and veterans frustrated, and wrong-headed proposals have been made to privatize veterans’ homes; and

WHEREAS:

            AFSCME members have stepped up to the plate to support state veterans’ homes. In 2007, the International Union created a Matching Fund Program for Veterans, inspired by a successful program launched by Local 387 in Connecticut. The International Union will match up to $10,000 raised by any affiliate that represents members at veterans’ homes, to help support programs and services.  Working with coalitions of veterans and their families and supporters, we have been able to beat back privatization proposals; and

WHEREAS:

            The unemployment rate of recently returned veterans in 2011 was 12.1 percent, significantly higher than the 8.3 percent rate in the population as a whole. Young male veterans (those ages 18 to 24) had an unemployment rate of 29.1 percent in 2011, higher than that of young male nonveterans (17.6 percent).  Some veterans and reservists are denied their jobs when they return, in violation of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA).  In April 2011, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden launched the Joining Forces campaign to help military families and promote the employment and training of veterans and military spouses in the public and private sectors; and

WHEREAS:

            Health care for veterans has improved in recent years, but much remains to be done.  The Veterans Administration still has a backlog of about 850,000 pension and compensation claims.  Troops returning from Afghanistan and Iraq are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries at a higher rate than ever before.   One in six of the troops returning from Afghanistan and Iraq – more than 300,000 veterans – are affected. And record numbers of troops are returning home with other grievous injuries that in many cases will require lifelong care; and

WHEREAS:

            More than 416,000 veterans have enrolled in school under the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, which President Obama signed in 2009. Its benefits are available to anyone who served in the military since Sept. 11, 2001.  It covers $17,500 worth of annual tuition for private schools and full tuition for public schools.  However, predatory recruiting practices used by some for-profit education institutions are a disservice to veterans and must be addressed. 

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:

            That AFSCME expresses its profound gratitude and admiration for the men and women in uniform, our true “one percent”; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

            That we will continue to work with veterans and their families and supporters to fight for adequate funding for the services that veterans need and deserve, and to fight proposals to turn services over to private profiteers; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

            That we will continue our Matching Fund Progam for Veterans; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

            We applaud the efforts of First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden on behalf of military families.  We support efforts to ensure that all veterans, no matter when they served, find employment after their service and that military spouses have the help they need to find work. The return rights granted by USERRA should be vigorously enforced; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED:

            We also applaud the success of the new Post 9/11 G.I. Bill and support efforts, like the Military and Veterans Educational Reform Act, to strengthen it to protect veteran students from private sector predators.