CLAIM PROCESSING KEEPS INJURED TROOPS WAITING

WASHINGTON — A system designed to get wounded troops out of the military and on disability compensation more quickly has failed recently to meet its efficiency goals, delaying service members’ release sometimes more than a year, documents show.

The lag has caused some of the troops to turn down job offers or postpone college because they don’t know when they will be discharged from the military.

The system is called the Integrated Disability Evaluation System. It started as a pilot in 2007, but has since been rolled out to READ MORE »

APRIL UNEMPLOYMENT DATA IS MIXED NEWS FOR VETS

The employment picture for veterans improved in April — a sign that efforts to encourage employers to hire veterans may be working — but jobs seem to remain elusive for young, male combat veterans.

Overall, the nation’s unemployment rate for April was 9 percent, up from 8.8 percent in March, according to a Friday report from the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. About 13.7 million Americans were unemployed, roughly the same number as in March despite the addition of 244,000 jobs in the retail, hospitality, professional and business services, and health care industries. READ MORE »