Some 14,000 men and women leave the forces every year to seek a new role in civilian life. Some fail to cope. Statistically, they are over-represented in the ranks of the unemployed and the homeless.
It’s no secret that some ex-service personnel struggle to adapt to civilian life, yet on paper they have so much to offer. Many have strong technical skills, they are mission-focused and have a can-do attitude, and they tend to be loyal employees. A survey by the accountancy firm Deloitte found that 76% of employers who have taken on military veterans say they have lower rates of absenteeism than the wider workforce and 40% say they stay as employees for longer.
It’s a tragedy that many employers miss out on the qualities that veterans can bring to their businesses, either through lack of knowledge or misconceptions. We want to highlight to Cumbrian businesses to seriously consider recruiting them. The following resources and organisations provide support to businesses looking to employ veterans.
The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise from the nation to those who serve, or have served, and their families, which says we will do all we can to ensure they are treated fairly and not disadvantaged in their day-to-day lives.
Employers that sign can make public promises to set out their support to members of the Armed Forces community who work in their business or access their products and services.
Typically, these promises might include pledges to encourage reserve service, support employment of veterans and service spouses, and to give the Armed Forces community a fair deal on commercial products and services.
More than 1,500 businesses have signed so far, including Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, which became the first Chamber of Commerce to sign up in March 2016.
Other businesses with Cumbrian links to have signed the covenant include BAE Systems, Eddie Stobart, GSK and Siemens.
There is help available for businesses looking to recruit veterans. Click here for more information.
Cumbria Chamber of Commerce is a signatory of the Armed Forces Covenant and a recipient of the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme - Bronze Award. In doing so they have pledged to: support the armed forces community and promote the business as an armed forces friendly organisation, open to employing reservists, veterans and military spouses and partners and cadet instructors.
Managing Director of Cumbria Chamber, Suzanne Caldwell said:
"It's not just about supporting the armed services, though that is really important, it's actually about how we can benefit as a business and how other businesses in the county can benefit too.
"One thing we've signed up for is to offer guaranteed interviews to people leaving the armed forces and their partners providing they meet the minimum requirements for the job. Also we're engaging actively with a specialist recruitment service that's available to encourage people leaving the armed forces to move o Cumbria to take up jobs and live here. This is something businesses across the county could really benefit from.
"We have got a huge staffing crisis at the moment, people are constantly leaving the services who have got great skills and experiences that we could all take advantage of.
"I'd really encourage you to have a look, see what's involved and sign up yourself."
The Career Transition Partnership (CTP) is a joint venture between the Ministry of Defence and Right Management Ltd, the career development and outplacement wing of ManpowerGroup.
CTP provides resettlement services for those leaving the forces and acts as an intermediary for employers looking to hire service leavers.
To date, CTP has assisted more than 235,000 service leavers move into civilian life has and supported thousands of organisations looking to employ them.
Under a new scheme, businesses hiring military veterans can save thousands of pounds in employee National Insurance contributions. From 6 April 2022, employers do not have to pay National Insurance contributions for veterans in their first year of civilian employment after leaving the armed forces. Businesses are also able to claim this relief retrospectively for any qualifying employees who they employed in the last 12 months.
Read more about the scheme here.
Veterans into Logistics is a non-profit organisation which was formed to provide training and support, our main aim to change the lives of ex-forces, service leaver including individuals with convictions and any other vulnerable people who need help in gaining paid employment within the logistics sector.
Forces Link is an exciting non-profit community interest company, set up to give our Armed Forces Community opportunity to reclaim that sense of belonging, give access to support, activities and events here in Cumbria. We are based in Carlisle but support former service personnel and their families across the county.
Video: Matching veterans to the needs of business
Watch the video here
Video case study: Persimmon Homes
Watch the video here
Sign-up to the Armed Forces Covenant
More details here
