April 11, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Unemployment and young veterans, 2007

Young male veterans (those ages 18 to 24) who served since September 2001 had an unemployment rate of 11.2 percent in 2007, not statistically different from the jobless rate of young male nonveterans (10.5 percent).

Unemployment rates of veterans who served since September 2001 and nonveterans, 18- to 24-year-olds, 2007
[Chart data—TXT]

Young male veterans were more likely to be in the labor force than their nonveteran counterparts.

About 1.5 million veterans served since September 2001. As with all period-of-service groups, men accounted for the vast majority (84 percent) of these veterans. However, the proportion of veterans who were women was much higher among veterans who served in this most recent era than among those who served in earlier periods.

The Current Population Survey (CPS) is the source of these data. In the CPS, veterans are defined as men and women who have previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and who were civilians at the time they were surveyed. To learn more, see “Employment Situation of Veterans: 2007,� USDL 08-0456.