Union League Holds a Job Fair For US Military Veterans
By Cherri Gregg
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- More than two hundred military men and women today flocked to Broad and Sansom Streets in center city for the Union League's very first Veterans' Job Fair.
The day included military-to-civilian wardrobe makeovers. Jose Figueroa, 18, went from grey, government-issued camouflage fatigues to a gently used Brooks Brothers suit and designer tie.
"I'm casual man, so I'm simple," he said when asked what type of suit he'd choose. "Black -- all black, maybe."
Figueroa, who is just one year into his service in the Army National Guard, got a new suit thanks to the Philadelphia-based Suiting Warriors Foundation.
He says he decided to come to the job fair with the hope of landing a part-time job that he can use to pay for college.
Figueroa says his biggest challenge is translating his experience into words that fit the civilian job descriptions.
"I work with weapons," he says. "It's kind of hard to explain what I do: dealing with really heavy equipment -- artillery."
Mike Mayer, chair of the Union League's job fair, understands the dilemma.
"Civilian corporations and small businesses have a hard time deciphering what the veterans did," he notes. He says the job fair brought in more than 50 employers, as well as job coaches for résumé makeovers to help bridge the veteran-employer communication gap.
"The coaches help veterans and their family members digest what they did in the service to hopefully turn that into something meaningful and help employers find a good fit," Mayer says.
Figueroa took advantage of the help provided and says his newest job challenge will be making a choice.
"Choosing the right one," he says, chuckling. "There were so many good and nice people there."
About 250 people attended the job fair, along with 50 employers.
