Teamsters Offer Testimony on Veterans Job Training Program

Teamsters Local 786 President Michael Yauger Speaks Before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs

WASHINGTON, April 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Teamsters Local 786 President Michael Yauger testified before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs on "Veterans' Employment: Improving the Transition from the Battlefield to the Workforce." Yauger serves as the International Coordinator for the Teamsters Helmets to Hardhats program designed to assist veterans in transitioning their military skills into the civilian sector so all who honorably served our country have a step up on finding employment.

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Yauger spoke at length regarding the union's efforts to help streamline the process for veterans to obtain a commercial drivers license after they leave the service. The training veterans receive while in the service is not recognized by state agencies, so the union created the Teamsters/Military CDL Licensing Program, a 200-hour course that bridges the gaps between military and civilian training.

"We worked in partnership with multiple state agencies and the military school houses," Yauger said. "The course is taught by certified Teamster trainers at no cost to the veteran."

The program is active in Illinois and is currently being developed in Washington, Nevada, New York and California. While the program has been a success, Yauger raised concerns over challenges inherent in the system for veterans seeking employment.

"While the objective of our programs is to develop and provide gainful career opportunities for our returning sons and daughters, we have encountered many obstacles and impediments to their successful transition," Yauger said. "We must work together to identify and create a framework for expediting training, licensing and certification based on qualifying service-related training and experience. Our country has an obligation in attaining the certification they need to achieve employment."

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit www.teamster.org for more information.

SOURCE International Brotherhood of Teamsters