VOA标准英语2014--US Companies Reach Out to Hire Veterans 美国公司愿意尽量雇佣退伍老兵

 

US Companies Reach Out to Hire Veterans 美国公司愿意尽量雇佣退伍老兵

NEW YORK — Despite an improving economy, U.S. veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are still having difficulty finding jobs - and their unemployment rate of just under 10 percent is considerably¹ higher than the national average.  But a number of companies are committed to making things better.  

The band played, attendees honored their country, and then they went about the business of finding jobs.  The event, at the 69th Regiment² Armory³ in New York, brought together some 1,000 veterans looking for their break back into civilian⁴ life.  Companies from all sectors⁵ - private and public - were there. Some, like Toyota, have made real commitments - says company representative, Don Evan.

"In three years, and 621 or 622 job fairs, we’ve hired 22,000 young men and women from our armed  forces," he said. "I think if you look at today’s veterans they’ve got outstanding skills.  They’re trainable, they’re smart.  They’ve had leadership, they’ve had more responsibility at an earlier age than civilian counterparts.  What they lack is the ability to market themselves."

Part of the marketing⁶ process is learning how to sell one’s skills.  A team of professionals worked with the vets⁷ to put those skills down on paper so they would be understandable to a prospective⁸ employer.

The veterans look at these opportunities with clear focus.

"I've seen a lot of great companies here today.  They are hiring for a lot of great positions that I'm qualified⁹ for and hopefully I'll be able to get into one of these good positions with one of these good companies," said one veteran job-seeker.

"They want to help us veterans.  A lot of us are coming out with PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder], with scars, and injured…their hand is out to us more than it was a few years ago, I think," said another veteran.

Dakota Meyer, a Medal of Honor recipient¹⁰, is the unofficial spokesman for vets searching for civilian work.  He talked about the burden placed on his fellow servicemen and women, especially those who served in Afghanistan and Iraq.    

“It was the longest war ever fought.  It was fought by such a small percentage of our population, less than 0.45 percent of our nation carried the burden of this war over the past 12-13 years," he said. "Are they ready?  Of course.  They are ready for anything.  They’re ready to go to war tomorrow, so they’re ready to go to any civilian workplace."

 

More veterans are finding work these days, mainly because the American economy is growing after years of recession.  Veteran leaders, such as Meyer, see this development as proof that a tougher focus on veteran unemployment by the White House, Congress, communities, labor¹¹ unions and business is paying off.

1 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

2 regiment   

n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制

参考例句：

• As he hated army life,he decide to desert his regiment.因为他嫌恶军队生活，所以他决心背弃自己所在的那个团。
• They reformed a division into a regiment.他们将一个师整编成为一个团。

3 armory   

n.纹章，兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Nuclear weapons will play a less prominent part in NATO's armory in the future.核武器将来在北约的军械中会起较次要的作用。
• Every March the Armory Show sets up shop in New York.每年三月，军械博览会都会在纽约设置展场。

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

7 vets   

abbr.veterans （复数）老手，退伍军人；veterinaries （复数）兽医n.兽医( vet的名词复数 )；老兵；退伍军人；兽医诊所v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的第三人称单数 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• I helped train many young vets and veterinary nurses too. 我还帮助培训了许多年青的兽医和护士。 来自互联网
• In fact, we've expanded mental health counseling and services for our vets. 实际上，我们已经扩大了退伍军人的心理健康咨询和服务。 来自互联网

8 prospective   

adj.预期的，未来的，前瞻性的

参考例句：

• The story should act as a warning to other prospective buyers.这篇报道应该对其他潜在的购买者起到警示作用。
• They have all these great activities for prospective freshmen.这会举办各种各样的活动来招待未来的新人。

9 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

10 recipient   

a.接受的,感受性强的 n.接受者,感受者,容器

参考例句：

• Please check that you have a valid email certificate for each recipient. 请检查是否对每个接收者都有有效的电子邮件证书。
• Colombia is the biggest U . S aid recipient in Latin America. 哥伦比亚是美国在拉丁美洲最大的援助对象。

11 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。