OKLAHOMA CITY – As the number of people available to work in Oklahoma dovetails with a downward nationwide trend, employers are turning to previously overlooked workforce pools to find employees.
Retiring baby boomers, declining birth rates, immigration changes and trends among young workers are leaving more jobs open than filled nationwide, the Wall Street Journal recently reported. Oklahoma has one of the worst workforce shortage rates in the nation with just 52 available workers for every 100 jobs open, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
With the national unemployment rate for veterans of working age trending lower than the civilian population, competition is high for the veteran workforce.
In Comanche County, employers have the luxury of a large portion of the veteran workforce pool in their backyard, with civilian veterans making up more 20% of Lawton’s population.
In particular, Gulf War Era II veterans – those who served since Sept. 2001– are sought after with a mere 3.3% unemployment rate in Oklahoma against a slightly higher 3.5% rate for civilians in the state.
If employers are struggling to find veterans, U.S. Air Force veteran Randall Coon knows where to find them.
Coon is the director of Oklahoma Specific Transition Education Program, an outreach of the Oklahoma Department of Veteran Affairs. The program helps veterans transition from service to civilian life.
Coon said veterans bring proven leadership skills, the ability to adapt to situations, are mission oriented, possess a strong work ethic and perform well under pressure. Veterans are also appreciative of the job as they take the responsibility to provide for the families seriously, he said.
“When I work with a veteran, they are usually at the lowest point in life,” Coon said. “I worked with a veteran who got a job and he told me that getting a job gave him self-worth and that he did not feel like a failure.”
Employers who explore this workforce will often find veterans are skilled in “technical expertise,” Coon said, including information technology, mechanics, electronics, engineering, logistics, health care and aviation. They are often known to possess knowledge in security and risk assessment, project management, and crisis management.
Coon isn’t the only one who knows where to find veterans. Erin Glass and Kelly Davis are business services coordinators for the South Central Oklahoma Workforce Board, which oversees programs to help veterans find jobs.
The board offers resources to employers and job seekers with the goal to boost employment and improve economic outcomes for the state. The board oversees workforce centers in Lawton, Duncan and Chickasha, and serves eight counties in southern Oklahoma region.
“It’s easy access to them because we work with them,” Glass said. “There’s a transitional program on Fort Sill base that workforce works with.”
Lawton is home to a state vocational rehabilitations services program and other services for veterans who are job seeking, Glass said.
The workforce board has a liaison in Lawton who specializes in veteran employment and holds job fairs specifically for that workforce, Davis said.
“He reaches out to a lot of businesses,” Davis said of the liai son. “He always has a good turnout for job fairs and it is where the veterans have the highest priority for the business there. He even had people come from Oklahoma City to Lawton.”
Statistics show employers are happier with veteran employees than civilians. A study by Call of Duty Endowment and ZipRecuiter, found 59% of employers reported veterans outperformed civilians.
Employers can benefit from tax credits for hiring certain populations with significant barriers to employment, including veterans. According to Indeed, a job posting website, the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs offer resources and financial assistance to employers who hire veterans.
The Work Opportunity Tax Credit gives employers a deduction for hiring veterans. Created in 2019, the Consolidated Appropriations Act extended the tax break in 2021 through Dec. 31, 2025.
According irs.gov, employers of all sizes can qualify, but qualified veterans have to meet at least one criteria, which include the length of time a veteran is unemployed; entitled to compensation for a service related disability; or a household member who has received Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program benefits.
For more details about hiring veterans, visit oklahoma.gov/okstep or for the workforce board, call (580) 467-3486.
Editor’s note: This is the first installment of a series to explore untapped workforce for employers competing in Oklahoma’s statewide labor shortage.