Reserve Officers Association

Make Veterans Preference More Than an Empty Promise
Resolution No 10-24

WHEREAS, more than 750,000 military personnel have served on active duty since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001; and,

WHEREAS, the unemployment rate for veterans under the age of 30 is substantially higher than the unemployment rate among non-veterans in the same age group; and,

WHEREAS, in this time of severe recession the Federal Government is one of very few major employers that is expanding and hiring a substantial number of new employees; and,

WHEREAS, Congress enacted the Veterans Preference Act (VPA) in 1944, giving most veterans five extra points (ten points for veterans with serious service-connected disabilities) in obtaining and keeping federal jobs;

WHEREAS, the VPA has become largely a dead letter in recent decades because it lacks an effective enforcement mechanism and because model of the entrance exam (with a numerical score to which five or ten points can be added) has been almost entirely superseded;

WHEREAS, more than 40 states have enacted their own veterans preference laws with respect to employment by the states and their political subdivisions (counties, cities, school districts, etc.);

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Reserve Officers Association of the United States, chartered by Congress, urge the Congress to update and enforce the Veterans Preference Act (VPA) in order to make veterans preference more than an empty promise; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Reserve Officers Association urge those states that do not have veteran’s preference laws to enact them, with respect to state and local government employment. Those states that have veteran’s preference laws should comprehensively review those laws to ensure that the preference applies to all uniformed service veterans and that an effective enforcement mechanism is provided.


Adopted by the ROA National Convention 10 February 2010
Source: Rewritten by ROA Headquarters (SW) and amended by the convention delegates
Renewed as 07-23 by the National Convention 30 June 2007
Renewed as 04-44 by the National Convention 12 June 2004

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