Unemployment patterns for veterans vary across the country

Between 2006 and 2010, an estimated 6.6 percent of the Veteran population was unemployed. However, the unemployment rate varied greatly by region and county. On average, counties in the South and the West had the highest rates (6.7 percent). The average for nonmetro counties (6.7 percent) was higher than the average for metro counties (6.4 percent). Overall, nonmetro counties in the South had the highest average Veteran unemployment rate (7.0 percent). The Veteran unemployment rate was also high in historically manufacturing dependent counties in the Midwest. These geographic patterns are similar to those for unemployment among the civilian adult population as a whole. This map is from the Atlas of Rural and Small-Town America on the ERS website. Today, ERS is co-hosting Veterans, Reservists, and Military Families (VRMF) Data and Research Workshop.

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