Bipartisan legislation has been reintroduced to provide in-demand skills training and employment assistance to members of National Guard and Reserve who are within 180 days of transitioning into civilian life.
Currently, the U.S. Department of Defense offers access to the SkillBridge program to active duty servicemembers transitioning out of their military service. SkillBridge connects departing servicemembers to in-demand skills training and prospective employers who are ready to hire.
The Transition for Success Act would expand access to the SkillBridge program by allowing all National Guard and Reserve servicemembers to participate in the program upon departing military service. The Department of Defense projects that the legislation would lead to a 30% increase in participation in the SkillBridge program. In 2019, only 8,600 servicemembers utilized the program.
A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center last year found that only one in four veterans said they had a civilian job lined up after they left the military. Among post-9/11 veterans, 43% reported that it took them more than six months after leaving their service to find a job, with 6% of those reporting that they did not find a job at all.