Veterans and spouses invited to hiring fairs in August

Veterans and spouses invited to hiring fairs in August

Opportunities for veterans, servicemembers and their spouses to find meaningful employment are abound in August.

The American Legion and its partners will sponsor 25 veterans career fairs next month through the national Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) program and initiatives at the post and department level. Through HOH, a military employment program created by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, fairs will reach rural areas, such as North Platte, Neb., and also extend to metropolitan areas, such as Tampa, Fla.

The American Legion has been an official strateic partner of HOH since its launch in 2010, often providing Legion posts as hosting sites for the fairs. The U.S. Chamber reports that, as of March 31, 255,000 hires have been made at their career fairs. The organization's goal is to hire 500,000.

This month, HOH will also host two career fairs exclusively for military spouses, welcoming them to Camp Lejeune, N.C., on Aug. 19 and Fort Polk, La., on Aug. 26-27. Other notable venues include Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, on Aug. 28, and a two-day "jobs summit" at Fort Bragg on Aug. 12-13 which will feature employment workshops and opportunities to network with senior officials from companies and government agencies.

The month will cap off with the Legion's signature organizational job fair on Aug. 26 in Charlotte, N.C. - the site of its national convention. Last year, at the Legion's 95th National Convention, 80 employers were on hand, looking to hire veterans, servicemembers and their spouses.

Prior to attending an HOH career fair, attendees are encouraged to pre-register through the job fair's page on the U.S. Chamber's website and upload their resumes to allow easy access for employers on hand. Attendees are also encouraged to take advantage of the employment workshops usually held before the career fairs, which often include personal resume reviews, interview exercises and general job-search help.

Veterans, servicemembers and their spouses are invited to attend all HOH job fairs. For a complete listing of this month's Legion-sponsored job fairs, visit the Legion's job fair calendar on Legion.org.