WASHINGTON D.C. – Bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Thom Tillis (R-NC), as well as U.S. Reps. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY-18) and Markwayne Mullin (R-OK-2) – the Wounded Warrior Employment Improvement Act – passed the Senate last month. Key portions of the bill were included as part of the Fiscal Year 2016 appropriations bill. Brown and Tillis, members of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, introduced the bill to help veterans with service-connected disabilities find and retain employment.

“Veterans injured while serving our country deserve assistance to build careers when they return home,” said Brown. “This provision would ensure that the Department of Veterans Affairs can continue to provide wounded warriors with the support and training that reflects their exceptional service to our country.”

The Wounded Warrior Employment Improvement Act would require the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) to publish an action plan for improving the VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment program (VR&E). The plan must include:

  • Steps to remedy workload management at VA regional offices and to reduce the caseload per VR&E counselor, allowing more individualized attention for veterans;
  • Analysis of why so few veterans who have served post-September 11, 2001 have chosen to participate in VA rehabilitation programs compared to the rate of veterans who seek VA educational assistance;
  • Steps to increase VA rehabilitation  program participation for veterans serving post-September 11, 2001; and
  • The creation of a national staff training program for vocational rehabilitation counselors that covers post-traumatic stress disorder, mental health conditions, and traumatic brain injury.

The bill is endorsed by the Wounded Warrior Project, The American Legion, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), and the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), and the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA). A one-pager can be found here.

 

###