When Elexious Dasilva was discharged from the U.S. Army last November after serving for two years, she knew she needed to find a job with flexible hours to help her through college.
The 22-year-old Johnston native sought help at Operation Stand Down Rhode Island, a nonprofit that helps veterans find jobs and other resources.
Through the program, Dasilva found a part-time job at a fast-food restaurant while she works toward a degree in social work at the Community College of Rhode Island.
“It was awesome. They helped me build up my resume and helped me pretty much through the whole process,” Dasilva said.
Dasilva is among a growing number of veterans who are finding work in Rhode Island.
Two years ago, the state’s veterans’ unemployment rate dropped to 3.6%, its lowest point in a decade, and fell to 2.4% in 2018, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
This year’s numbers are on a similar track, the R.I. Department of Labor and Training reports.
Job seekers are in frequent contact with the R.I. Office of Veterans Affairs, a multipurpose hub that directs veterans to various local resources depending on their needs.
“We certainly haven’t taken our foot off the gas here,” spokesman Michael Jolin said.
Through the OVA’s Veterans Resource Center, veterans searching for work can find a number of organizations that offer help. Operation Stand Down is on the list, not only helping connect veterans with work, but also remaining cognizant of issues that can sometimes make it hard to get and keep a good job.
‘It’s a rigorous application process. … We need to know that you’re a fisherman.’
Fred Mattera, Commercial Fisheries of Rhode Island executive director
A partnership between Operation Stand Down and Real Pathways Rhode Island has helped hundreds of job seekers through Veterans Pathways to Prosperity, the result of a grant from Real Pathways. The workforce-development program, created in 2016, is part of Real Pathways’ effort to assist people dealing with issues that have stood in the way of finding employment.
It has allowed Operation Stand Down to broaden the scope of its job assistance, said Tyrone A. Smith, Operation Stand Down’s director of employment and housing.
The organization’s use of a federal grant is restricted to dishonorably discharged veterans who completed 90 or more days of active service, but Pathways to Prosperity is more inclusive.
Out of 132 people served in fiscal 2018, 100 were placed in jobs, Smith said. The remaining number is still in contact with Operation Stand Down.
Veterans who find jobs through the organization are working in a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, health care, construction, hospitality, retail and even commercial fishing.
A veteran was hired by a vessel last year, and two more are applicants for this year’s apprenticeship training at the Commercial Fisheries Center of Rhode Island, according to Fred Mattera, the group’s executive director.
The four-week program, in its third year, is ideal for former military applicants who are committed to working on the water, Mattera said.
“It’s a rigorous application process, and once accepted we need to know you’re committed. We need to know that you’re a fisherman,” he said. “We’ve developed a nice relationship with Operation Stand Down, all of us fishermen feel very strongly about trying to work with veterans.”
At the Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance, a grant from the DLT is dedicated to helping veterans find work.
The money, awarded in February 2018, helped 30 veterans land a job or internship by the end of that year. Most in that group were hired directly, Lee Silvestre, a senior analyst at SENEDIA, said.
Although the alliance is made up mainly of businesses in the defense industry, Silvestre works with veterans of all ages and skill levels to help them find all kinds of work.
“We know what gets a resume in front of a company, whether it’s a defense company or not,” she said. “I work with a veteran on their story – their resume and their paperwork. We have a myriad of relationships with Rhode Island companies that work directly with our members.”
Security clearances often give former military members an advantage in defense-related jobs, Silvestre added.
About six veterans have found work in the past year through WeMake RI, a manufacturing training company that regularly accepts trainees from Operation Stand Down.
Often, specialized skills are what make a veteran stand out, WeMake RI Executive Director Barbara Jackson said.
“For us, particularly in manufacturing, if I’m comparing someone who’s fixed rotary-wing aircraft in Afghanistan versus a kid just out of high school, one is going to be a whole lot easier to place and need less training than the other would,” she said.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Graham@PBN.com.