The book “Why Is Veteran Unemployment So High?” by David Loughran is an extensive explanation of why the war veterans are facing a difficulty in landing a new job after coming from the battlefronts. Talking of unemployment as a national crisis to the United States, the country has been facing increasing rates in this sector. The reports begin by introducing us to the possible causes of the eminent high rate of unemployment in the US. The Great Recession played a significant role in worsening the situation from 2007. Furthermore, the book talks about how it is a tedious and arduous ordeal for those who are from military duty to transit into the civilian world by giving various hypotheses ( Loughran, 2014) .
Official statistics from studies show that the rate of unemployment of the young military veterans of age ranging from eighteen to twenty-four was at a staggering twenty-nine percent by 2011. The report tries to find the perspective of the statistics by digging into history to unfold the time aspect of veteran unemployment, finding the comparison between the rate of unemployment for them and the non-veterans, and reporting on the crisis has been varied since the military separation. Again, statistics show that between the years 2000 and 2011, the unemployment point rate of the younger veterans to be unemployed was at 3.4 percent as compared to the non-veterans of similar situations ( Loughran, 2014) . But, this variation between the two parties falls rapidly with age and time from the time when military separation took place.
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The book stands upfront to refute the way the topic of increased unemployment of veterans is approached in the media and public forums. Specifically, the discussions fail to address the disparity between the veterans and their non-veteran counterparts when seeking for a job in the civilian market. Some of the discrepancies in question include demographic differences like age, race citizenship, ethnicity, and educational achievement; sampling variation in the survey-based data; and the difference in the veteran unemployment since the age of military separation. It is such an attainment of the report to be able to address the necessary components of comparison between the two parties (the veteran’s vis-à-vis non-veterans).
The report works in line with two nationally representative statistical bodies like the Current Population Survey (CPS) and American Community Survey (ACS) to document the current trends in the crisis ( Loughran, 2014) . To comprehend the statistics, the report suggests some hypotheses that help explain the likelihood of veterans being unemployed as compared to the non-veterans. The book finalizes by suggesting the possible directions take for future research and suggests the ways forward to reduce the crisis. The book expresses three key findings on this issue.
Firstly, young people from the military are more likely than their counterparts to be unemployed. However, the gap quickly closes as the age bracket and time since being separated from the military becomes higher ( Loughran, 2014) . Secondly, the evidence that exists is in support of the hypothesis that the fact that veterans, mostly the younger ones, are more likely to have in the near past separated from employment (military service) and this reflects the high rates of unemployment in this section of the population. As a result, they are more likely to be caught up in the job hunt, which apparently takes time. This is true particularly during the periods of slow economic growth. Thirdly, the existing evidence makes little heed to the hypothesis that the vets are significantly underprivileged in the civilian job market. As it progresses, the report suggests five hypotheses that can be used to understand in a broad sense the reason for having such a crisis in America.
The first hypothesis is that the military is connected with being a causal agent of poor health both physically and mentally of the individuals. And as it is known, poor health may lead to unemployment. Secondly, the selection is another likely reason. The people who apply for military jobs by choice have the features that would make them miss future employment in the civilian labor market than those who fail to use. Thirdly, there is a skill mismatch in that the individuals develop skills that do not conform to the citizen employment. The fourth hypothesis is that the employers choose to discriminate against war veterans. Finally, the military veterans, who were formerly employed in the service would be more likely to be separated from the job and would be searching for new fronts which take time ( Loughran, 2014) .
The five hypotheses have a high point to put across. However, it is important to put a little reaction to them. Apart from the job search, which explains the short-term point of unemployment evident in the data, some of them show some weakness. Because they are more vulnerable to suffer injuries that hamper their health, the evidence on this cause does not clearly explain how this leads to increased unemployment. Although there could be a mismatch in skills, the transition to the civilian labor market can be smoothened through relevant education and training. It is so contrary that the veterans develop some characteristics that deny them the chance of landing a job in the civilian place. In fact, there is evidence that the features they gain can be their leverage to securing a job. The discrimination experienced from some employers needs more research to understand the occurrence. The clear evidence is that the veterans, being out of a job, would spend some time searching for new avenues.
The book concludes with giving some recommendation to reducing the unemployment phenomenon. The outstanding message that the author tries to air out is that the policymakers who are willing to address the crisis should pay attention to the programs and policies that ensure a job search is efficient.
Reference
Loughran, D. S. (2014). Why is veteran unemployment so high? Rand Corporation.
