Coeur D Idaho

Officials eye employment for veterans

COEUR d'ALENE - Prodding businesses to put returning servicemen and women on the payroll. Training soldiers on rejoining the workforce while they're still in service.

These are a few possibilities to address widespread need for career opportunities for veterans, according to a panel presentation on Wednesday at the Western Governors' Association annual meeting.

"One of the questions I received as the agenda went out was, 'This is something we haven't spent much time on, why this subject, and why now?'" said Gov. Butch Otter, WGA chairman.

But there are roughly 2,800 soldiers returning this fall from Iraq and Afghanistan to Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Montana and Utah, he said.

"We need to be prepared," Otter said.

Christine Gregoire, governor of Washington, said she hopes to see states facilitating post-service employment, which she found a major concern during a visit to National Guard soldiers in the Middle East.

"The same thing was said by the majority of (soldiers) - 'I'm worried when I come home, am I going to have a job? Am I going to be able to provide for my family?'" Gregoire said.

The panel, which spoke before representatives of 19 states and three territories at The Coeur d'Alene Resort, included spokespersons from federal and state veterans services, and the nonprofit sector.

Jim Nicholson, former secretary of Veterans Affairs, said there is 11 percent unemployment among post 9-11 veterans.

"We can stipulate that this is a problem," Nicholson said.

Veterans aiming to enter the job market immediately are struggling, he said, likely because of minimal education and lack of experience with civilian interactions.

"That is particularly acute in the environment we're in now, in a restricted job market," he said.

Governors can step in to help, he said.

Many soldiers are trained in areas applicable to private sector jobs, he said. State offices can push employers to seek out veterans with those abilities, he said.

"I would put your top talented, motivated person on it, who reports directly to you," Nicholson said.

Hopefully that direct engagement will result in more hiring, he added.

"It's the right thing to do," he said.

Robert Hedelund, director of Marine and family programs for the U.S. Marine Corps, voiced frustration with the Corps' Transition Assistance. The program, only a few days long, isn't effectively helping soldiers assimilate back into society, he said.

Coeur d'Alene Resort | Idaho Resorts

The resort was constructed by Duane Hagadone and Jerry Jaeger and opened in 1986. Created by architect R.G. Nelson, the hotel functions a ¾ mile floating boardwalk. The site of the golf program was originally a sawmill, which operated from 1916 until the early 1970s. The Hagadone Corporation bought the house in 1988 and created the golf program and floating green, which opened in 1991. The building with the resort and golf course required environmental clean-up of the debris left from the lumber industry.

One of Idaho’s most famed resorts, the Coeur d’ Alene Resort defines luxurious. The Coeur d’Alene resort is home to the world’s only movable floating golf green. All rooms in the resort are non smoking.

If you’re arriving via the Spokane International Airport and need floor transportation to the Resort, Limo Van service is available with advance notice at a cost of $59 per individual spherical trip (no break for 1 way trip).

If arriving in the Coeur d’Alene Airport, transportation is accessible for $35 per limo van. For all those arriving by automobile, parking is available within the Resort’s coated and secured garage for $15 per evening.

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