PALM DESERT – More than 70 veterans are now employed in the Riverside County workforce since the Riverside County Board of Supervisors adopted a veteran-friendly policy to improve employment opportunities for veterans.

Some 49 of those employed veterans were hired just this year.

The policy was one among many that Supervisor V. Manuel “Manny” Perez pushed for and won to assist veterans.

“ We are fortunate to have 127,000 Veterans living in our county,” Perez told Uken Report. “Many of those Veterans and their spouses are looking for employment. We hope they will consider Riverside County when looking for work. Hiring a Veteran makes great sense. Veterans have leadership skills , education, integrity, and the honesty we need on our team. Hiring military spouses is important as well.“

Nearly 800 veterans and spouses applying for county jobs benefited from the veteran-friendly policy’s guarantee of job interviews, according to figures from the county’s Human Resources department. Some 407 were referred for an interview in 2018; somse 374 have been referred for an interview to date this year.

veteran-friendly

A snapshot of interviewing and hiring progress.

 

 

 

Riverside County is among the nation’s leaders in being home to more than 130,000 veterans of the National Guard, Reserves, Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard.

When Perez took office, he wanted to help veterans and their spouses seeking jobs with the County of Riverside that would tap their talents, education, leadership and dedication to serving the public.

The county’s previous point-based hiring preference system was decades old, and was testing‑based. As many jobs do not require testing, the policy was in need of modernizing to make it more functional for veteran applicants and county departments.

Perez, his staff, and county officials in the Department of Human Resources developed a revitalized veteran-friendly employment preference program, which is reportedly among the most veteran- and veteran spouse-friendly employment programs in the state and likely in the country.

It improves the preference given to veterans by guaranteeing interviews to all qualified veterans and spouses, provided that applicants meet the requirements of the job.

The enhanced veteran-hiring program was unanimously adopted by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors in May, and took effect July 1, 2018. The program has been implemented across all county departments.

All honorably discharged veterans and their spouses are eligible for the preference. Applicants are required to submit documented proof of the veteran’s honorable or general discharge, including a Form DD-214 or NGB-22, by the job‑posting deadline.

Perez represents the eastern two-thirds of Riverside County on the Riverside County Board of Supervisors. Stretching from Palm Springs and Desert Hot Springs, south to the Salton Sea and east to Blythe and the Colorado River, the 4th District is the largest geographical district in the county.

 

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Image Sources

  • Veteran Hires: Supervisor V. Manuel Perez
  • Veteran Job Word Cloud: Shutterstock