One of the biggest challenges for New Hampshire businesses is recruiting and retaining workers as the state continues to see virtually full employment among its residents. There’s been broad efforts to ease the worker shortage, which is tied to the state’s deficit of housing affordable for workers.

Those efforts continue but it’s going to take time to produce results and employers cannot wait. A benefit of an all-hands-on deck approach, however, are many incremental but vitally important gains happening now.

I’d like to highlight one this month. The New Hampshire Veteran-Friendly Business Network (Network) is made up of businesses, organizations, colleges and schools in the state that the N.H. Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services (DMAVS) and N.H. Employment Security have recognized for their policies and practices that serve to empower and positively impact the lives of Granite State servicemembers, veterans and their families. Launched in 2020, the Network provides businesses with a roadmap to develop and enhance veteran-friendly employment practices knowing businesses can get great employees and reduce turnover.

The Network features over 70 Granite State businesses and organizations across the state in high-tech, the trades, manufacturing, finance, municipalities and more. Several are Business & Industry Association members. I encourage all businesses and organizations to look into the program.

Brenton Fraser, director of DMAVS’ Community Based Military Programs, said the Network is another example of the department’s efforts to be proactive and create opportunities for veterans after their service.

Fraser said the state has around 91,000 veterans who collectively have an employment rate generally consistent with the general public and is currently slightly higher. However, the Network is constantly connecting with new veterans coming to New Hampshire. Fraser said servicemembers who leave the Armed Forces are required to provide a home address upon separation and DMAVS immediately contacts them to detail available services. More than half of New Hampshire’s veterans are 65 and older and he sees this as a way to attract younger veterans to the state.

DMAVS’ holistic approach includes work to end veteran homelessness, providing suicide prevention help, connecting veterans to PTSD treatment and support, aiding veterans going through justice processes, and helping them transition overall to civilian life and the workforce.

“Employment is critical. A lot of issues come from not having a job and not being able to support a family,” Fraser said.

Veterans have proven to be incredible additions to workforces, but the transition can be a bumpy one. Even preparing a resume can be challenging as veterans have to translate military work and terminology into a compelling presentation of skills, especially for a first civilian job, Fraser explained.

DMAVS is like the hub of a wheel with spokes leading to many other support programs such as the Department of Defense’s SkillBridge and U.S. Chamber’s Hiring Our Heroes collaboration, which provides 180-day apprenticeships for veterans paid by the DoD. There’s also Portsmouth Naval Shipyard’s Transition Assistance Program, and AARP’s Veteran and Military Spouses Job Center. Another is the Helmets to Hardhats program, which helps transition veterans into careers in the building trades. The Troops to Trucks program allows eligible veterans trained to operate heavy vehicles to apply for a waiver of the commercial driver’s license road test and obtain a New Hampshire CDL by passing the written exam.

DMAVS also promotes that veterans can use the GI Bill to pay for programs like New Hampshire’s police and fire academies, another key connection as the state and municipalities struggle to recruit candidates for those positions.

“All these programs work to answer the question of ‘How do we connect veterans’ skills, knowledge and experience with employers’ critical needs,” Fraser said, highlighting that the Network excels at that in New Hampshire.

Erica Webb, military skills & test waiver program specialist at DMAVS, said many talented and skilled veterans, who have had full careers in the military, want new careers, and they range from junior enlisted personnel to officers. Webb said while hiring veterans is patriotic there’s a lot more to it.

“Veterans are highly skilled, adaptable, resilient and mission-driven,” she said. “Most come as experienced leaders, have an ability to work in a team setting and think outside the box. They want to continue contributing to their community and they want their employer to succeed.”

For more about the N.H. Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services and the New Hampshire Veteran-Friendly Business Network, visit dmavs.nh.gov.

Michael Skelton is president and CEO of the Business & Industry Association, New Hampshire’s statewide chamber of commerce and leading nonpartisan business advocate. Visit BIAofNH.com.