King County’s Vets 4 HIRE program, which launched in 2015 and receives funding annually from the Veterans, Seniors and Human Services Levy (VSHSL), provides six-month or longer on-the-job training experiences to help current and former military service members with their transition to civilian employment, and funding is available to support departments in recruiting veterans to their teams.

Participating King County agencies provide their program participants with part-time or full-time, practical experiences in a variety of fields to help them become more competitive for King County and other civilian jobs. The VSHSL will reimburse agencies half of the participant’s first six months of wages up to a maximum of $7,800.

So far, 12 county agencies have provided experiences for 83 military service members since 2015, in positions as diverse as human resources, parks maintenance, IT security, civil engineering, and more. Of these 83 participants, almost 85% reported a positive outcome, and almost 40% obtained regular positions with King County after their participation in the program. The remainder either went on to school or secured employment at other organizations.

Veterans bring unique skills, ideas, and perspectives to the workplace that are extremely valuable to organizations. If your department has a body of work that can help support a veteran in obtaining their civilian career goals, please consider creating an on-the-job Vets 4 HIRE opportunity. The Levy provides funding to support 16 positions each year. There are still 2021 funds available and there is a current candidate pool established to help simplify your hiring process.

To learn more about the program please contact your department Human Resources or Vets 4 HIRE Program Manager Susan Navetski at susan.navetski@kingcounty.gov.