Disabled Veterans and Employers: Moving From Surviving to Thriving

Employers have been eager to hire America’s veterans in recognition of the unique expertise they can bring to an organization, as well as a show of support and patriotism. But with over one-third of veterans nationwide reporting a disability, Voya Cares and Easterseals commissioned original research to better understand what it means to support veterans with disabilities and their caregivers in the workplace.

Below is a summary of findings. Download the full report (PDF) below.

The veteran community today looks quite different from what it did two decades ago. Service members from the post-9/11 generation returning to civilian life, often following multiple deployments, are returning to a different economy that demands new and constantly evolving skill sets. 

On the surface, employers’ efforts to hire veterans appear to have been successful: As of March 2024, the unemployment rate for all veterans is 3.0%, and it is 5.3% for veterans with a disability, lower than both groups’ non-veteran counterparts.

Disabled veterans report challenges transitioning from service to civilian life and work. In particular, they face unique barriers to finding appropriate employment and advancing in their careers. Both veterans with disabilities and employers face challenges connecting these veterans with promising job opportunities. Many disabled veterans report being underemployed. Additionally, disabled veterans are more likely than nondisabled veterans to feel they lack support for education and professional development opportunities. And employers have challenges around hiring disabled veterans, including their tendency not to voluntarily disclose that they have a disability.

There is a significant gap between employers’ perception of how they support disabled veterans at work and how disabled veterans and their caregivers feel their needs are being met in the workplace. Many employers see veteran outreach as an essential part of their recruitment, but they are less focused on specific outreach efforts to veterans with disabilities. Furthermore, employers are less certain about how to support disabled veterans, once hired. While most employers are interested in offering benefits to support disabled veterans and their caregivers — such as Stay-at-Work programs, managed accounts, and student debt management — the programs that disabled veterans prioritize often differ from what employers expect.

The majority of respondents to a consumer insights survey in October 2022 think more can be done to help veterans in the workplace:

• 93% strongly or somewhat agree “it is important that veterans are given a fair opportunity to be hired by corporations in America.”
• 88% strongly or somewhat agree “corporations could do more to help veterans.”

Many veterans with disabilities have low confidence about their long-term financial future and retirement. Even though many disabled veterans access VA resources, they are not confident they are maximizing the benefits and resources available to them and integrating them effectively with their employee benefits. This is especially evident for retirement planning services, an area in which employers traditionally may not offer many benefits.

Concerns about mental health benefits and support are top-of-mind. Disabled veterans recognize mental health as a top barrier to employment and indicate that mental health support and services are critical to their success at work. Yet even when employers make these supports available, disabled veterans often are hesitant to access them, partly because they may not want to disclose mental health challenges.

Caregivers of disabled veterans are struggling and frequently overlooked for support. Caregivers often perform a balancing act between work, caregiving and their own needs and would benefit from programs and resources that help them balance these demands.