On average from January through June, the unemployment rate among so-called “Gulf War Era II” veterans was 7.8% — a 25% drop from the 9% rate for 2013. The unemployment rate during the second quarter of this year averaged 6.4% compared to 8% in the first quarter, indicating continued positive progress as the year unfolds.

By comparison, the rate for non-veterans in the first half of this year averaged 6.4%.

An average of 175,000 post-9/11 veterans was out of work each month for the first six months of this year.

The Gulf War II veteran jobless rate remains significantly higher than the veteran population as a whole — 27% above the average 5.7% rate for all veterans in the first six months. That is a tiny bit improved over last year, when the overall 9% rate for Gulf War II veterans was just over one-third higher.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics in its Thursday release about the data cautioned that the new rates for male (8.8%) and female (9.6%) so-called “Gulf War II era” veterans “were not statistically different” from 2012. A year ago, the overall rate was 9.9%.

The overall 9% rate for Gulf War II veterans is just over one-third higher than the 6.6% for veterans as whole and one-fourth higher than non-veterans.

The new report also reported that twice as many of those most-recent recent veterans have service connected disabilities than all veterans — 29% vs. 15% as of August.

Gulf War II era veterans also reported more significant disability than other cohorts. Of those reporting a disability, 57% of Gulf War II veterans said they were 30% or more disabled compared to 47% for all veterans.

Of the Gulf War II veterans, about 40% reported having served in Afghanistan, Iraq or both. Those who served in both theaters had a slightly higher unemployment rate (13.3%) than those in only Iraq (10) and Afghanistan (12.3). The rate for those who served elsewhere: 10.9%.

Hispanic and Asian veterans from the most recent era had higher than average unemployment rates — 10.3% and 9.7% compared to 9% for White or African American.

The data was based on the monthly reports the bureau does through the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey of 60,000 households. It was supplemented by a special addition to the CPS in August that sought additional information about veterans.

States with the highest, lowest veteran’s 2013 unemployment rates

SOURCE: Bureau of Labor Statisctics

Full details, including links to download data.

The rate for all veterans dropped slightly to 6.2%, as did the rate for non-veterans overall (7.2%).

Some 226,000 Post-9/11 veterans were unemployed — up 36% in a month. For women, the rise was more dramatic; 43,000 without work was 60% higher than July.

“More than a single report, we know that too many post-9/11 veterans continue to struggle to find employment. We have made progress as a nation, but there is more we must do to support veterans’ transition from combat to career,” Derek Bennett of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America said in a release.

The chart below shows the unemployment trends since 2008.

• Analyze and download data that National Security Zone compiles from Bureau of Labor Statistics and other sources.
• Extract your own veteran-related unemployment data from the BLS.
• Archive of monthly data press releases, including all tables.

• For all veterans, the April rate was 6.2%, down from 7.1% in March and slightly lower than non-veterans (6.9%).
• For veterans who have served since 9/11 (know as the “Gulf War II” era), the monthly decline to 7.5% was significant; it was 9.2% in March, the same as April 2012.
• The rate for post-9/11 women fell nearly 5 points to 7.2%, the lowest since April 2011.

See chart and table below. | View and download our compilation of veterans unemployment statistics.

Meantime, the Los Angeles Times reported over the weekend that “thousands of National Guard and Reserve troops coming home from Afghanistan and elsewhere find they have been replaced, demoted, denied benefits or seniority.”

The Times found that the government itself is a leading contributor to the problem.

“Government agencies are among the most frequent offenders, accounting for about a third of the more than 15,000 complaints filed with federal authorities since the end of September 2001, records show. Others named in the cases include some of the biggest names in American business, such as Wal-Mart and United Parcel Service.”

&rarr Full Los Angeles Times story

MILITARY SUICIDES: Potential suicides among inactive U.S. Army reservists troops are up 25% through March compared to the same period a year ago, data from the Army shows. The number of potential suicides among active duty soliders is down 9%.

Reserve inactive suicides drove the increase, with 20 more potential suicides in the first quarter vs. 2012. The number of potential active duty suicides declined by four.   

Army suicides were up significantly last year compared to a year earlier — 325 either confirmed or under investigation among active duty and inactive reservists, compared to 283 confirmed the year before. Across all military branches, active duty suicides were up 16% over 2011, with the Army comprising the largest share, data released earlier this year show. 

View more data, including downloadable spreadsheets.

UNEMPLOYMENT:  Unemployment among 9/11-era veterans dropped slightly in March compared to the month before — 9.2% vs. 9.4%, but edged up slightly for women to 11.8% compared to 11.6%, new federal data shows.

The rate for 9/11-era women was up from a year ago — 8% v. 7.4% — while the overall rate for men and women combined was down to 7.1% from 7.5%. 

The rate for all veterans in March was up slightly to 7.1% from a month earlier, but showed improvement over the 7.5% rate in March 2012. A total of 783,000 veterans were unemployed in March. Of those, 207,000 — or 26% — were in the service since 9/11. The civilian unemployment rate in March was 7.4%.

Review and download the unemployment data.

Some 203,000 9/11-era veteras were unemployed in February — 49,000 fewer than January. Among women in the 9/11 cohort, the unemployment rate has averaged 11.8% compared to 10.4% for men. 

Overall, the 2012 unemployment rate for 9/11-era veterans has fallen significantly since 2011 — 9.9% for 2012 vs. 12.1% the year before. That was twice the drop as the non-veteran population (8.7% v. 7.9%).

Last month’s rate was higher than it was in February 2012 (7.6% then vs. 9.4% last month) but that may in part be because of a temporary one-month drop a year ago. 

Charts below are based on extracts of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

• NSJI collection of related data (downloadable): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AhAxyUlnJGbpdGNQekl3VDhGQUUzNzhteXF1eWNTb2c&usp=sharing

• Full details on 2012 data: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/vet.htm

• To extract your own historical data: www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab5.htm

• Washington Post today puts a human face on the problem.