Virginia Capitol Connections Winter 2019

Virginia’s Veterans: A Great Resource to Fill State’s ExpandingWorkforce By Ross Koenig, Virginia Department of Veterans Services

2018 has been a banner year for Virginia’s economy and for Virginia’s veterans. In June, Newport News Shipbuilding announced a major expansion of its workforce. In August, Micron Technology announced a $3 billion expansion of its memory chip plant in Manassas creating hundreds of new jobs. In November, Amazon announced that it would locate one of its new HQ2 locations in Crystal City, creating up to 25,000 new positions.

As Governor Terry McAuliffe took office that year, he set a goal of hiring 10,000 veterans through the V3 program during his administration. By 2015, the number of V3 certified employers statewide had grown to 300 and the initial goal was reached two years early. So, the Governor challengedV3 to raise the hiring goal to 25,000 by the time he left office in January 2018. When this number was reached, he raised the bar again to 30,000V3 hires. Not only was this goal met, it was surpassed. Governor Ralph Northam, an Army veteran himself, took office determined to keep up the momentum. In January 2018, he set a goal of 35,000V3 veteran hires during his administration (for 65,000 since June 2012). As of December 2018, the V3 program is on track to reach this goal as hires are now approaching 9,000 V3 veteran hires in 2018 (40,000 total since 2012) and the number of V3 certified employers has grown to nearly 700. What’s more, the list of V3 certified employers continues to grow and includes a wide variety of major manufacturers, technology companies, utilities and service providers, local and state government agencies, and more. The jobs these employers offer veterans span the spectrum from blue collar to white collar, from construction and security, and from administrative to managerial. Positions are available throughout the state—from NorthernVirginia to Southside, from Southwest to the Shenandoah Valley to the Eastern Shore. Since its creation only six years ago, the V3 Program has proven to be is a true example of a successful public-private partnership. From the beginning, it has enjoyed unflinching support from three Governors and members of the General Assembly, as well as Virginia’s business leaders and those in state and local government agencies. WeVirginians are proud to proclaim that we are the most veteran- friendly state in America. The V3 Program is a prime example of this commitment. Making sure Virginia’s veterans and their spouses find great jobs in the civilian workforce is a win-win proposition for our Commonwealth and for our economy. Ross Koenig is the V3 Program Manager at the Virginia Department of Veterans Services. For more information on V3, please visit www. dvsV3.com

Not only were these announcements great news for the Commonwealth, they were also great news for the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) program, a unique employment program operated by the Virginia Department of Veterans Services (DVS). Newport News Shipbuilding, Micron and Amazon are already V3 partner employers and are strongly committed to hiring Virginia’s transitioning service members and veterans to fill these new positions. In 2012, Governor Bob McDonnell and the General Assembly created what was, at that time, a one-of-a-kind program with the goal of bringing veterans and employers together to make it easier for the thousands of service members who were leaving active duty each year to find jobs in Virginia’s civilian workforce. The program was designed to help private employers learn the best ways to capitalize on the training, skills, and discipline veterans learned in the military and how they could be applied in civilian positions—a real “win- win” for veterans and business. The pilot program, called Virginia Values Veterans, or “V3” for short, would be administered by the Department of Veterans Services. Fifty major employers signed up for the first V3 training event, held at Capital One’s Richmond headquarters in June 2012. At that meeting, a goal was set to have fifty employers trained and certified during the first fiscal year. This goal was more than doubled as over 100 employers had receivedV3 certification by June 2013, demonstrating their commitment to hiring veterans. With the pilot program such a success, the General Assembly codified the program into law and fully funded it in 2013.

V

L to R: Gov. Ralph Northam; Col. David R. Rines, Hanover Co. Sheriff; Carlos Hopkins, Secretary of Veterans and Defense; and DVS Commissioner John Newby.

V irginia C apitol C onnections , W inter 2019

27