DEPARTMENT OF LABOR VETERANS SERVICES

Veterans may receive reemployment services from trained staff at American Job Centers (AJCs) throughout the state, which include five comprehensive centers and several smaller, affiliate locations. Among the staff are representatives funded by the Jobs for Veterans State Grant (JVSG) program, which offers specialized services as follows:

• Disabled Veterans’ Outreach Program (DVOP) Specialists provide intensive services and facilitate placements to meet the employment needs of veterans and eligible spouses who have significant barriers to employment or have otherwise been designated by the U.S. Department of Labor Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS) as qualifying for DVOP services. These barriers and designations include the following:

  • A special disabled or disabled veteran, as those terms are defined in 38 U.S.C. §4211(1) and (3); special disabled and disabled veterans are those who:

    • are entitled to compensation (or who, but for the receipt of military retired pay, would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or,

    • were discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability;

  • A veteran who had active military service, in whole or in part, during the Vietnam Era, which is Aug. 5, 1964 – May 7, 1975; for veterans who served in the Republic of Vietnam, the timeframe is Feb. 28, 1961 – May 7, 1975.

  • A homeless person, as defined in Sections 103(a) and (b) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11302(a) and (b)), as amended;

  • A recently-separated service member, as defined in 38 U.S.C. § 4211(6), who has been unemployed for 27 or more weeks in the previous 12 months;

  • An offender, as defined by WIOA Section 3 (38), who is currently incarcerated or who has been released from incarceration;

  • A veteran lacking a high school diploma or equivalent certificate;

  • A low-income individual (as defined by WIOA Section 3 (36));

  • Veterans ages 18-24;

  • Transitioning Service Members in need of intensive services (specifically, TSMs who have been assessed as not meeting Career Readiness Standards; are ages 18-24, regardless of whether they meet Career Readiness Standards; or are active duty service members being involuntarily separated through a Service reduction-in-force); and

  • Wounded, ill, or injured service members receiving treatment at Military Treatment Facilities or Warrior Transition Units (MTFs – WTUs) and the spouses and family caregivers of such wounded, ill, or injured service members.

▪ DVOP services in the affiliate AJCs are typically available by appointment only. AJC staff will assist veterans and eligible spouses in determining whether they qualify for referral to a DVOP based on information provided when registering in CTHires or completing the DOL-228/Veterans Triage form. For additional details about some of the above statutory references, refer to form DOL-228A/Veterans Triage Supplement. 

▪ Intensive services include: comprehensive and specialized assessments of skill levels and service needs; development of an individual employment plan to identify the employment goals, appropriate achievement objectives and appropriate combination of services for the participant to achieve the employment goals; group counseling; individual counseling and career planning; and short-term prevocational services that may include development of learning skills, communication skills, interviewing skills, punctuality, personal maintenance skills, and professional conduct to prepare individuals for unsubsidized employment or training. Veterans and eligible spouses who do not qualify to receive intensive services from a DVOP may receive these services from other AJC staff.

• Local Veterans’ Employment Representatives (LVER) conduct outreach to area employers to assist veterans in gaining employment, and they facilitate the employment, training, and placement services furnished to veterans in the state’s AJCs. LVERs are available to

  • Plan and participate in job and career fairs;

  • Conduct job searches and workshops, and establish job search groups, in conjunction with employers;

  • Coordinate with unions, apprenticeship programs and businesses or business organizations to promote and secure employment and training programs for veterans;

  • Inform Federal contractors of the process to recruit qualified veterans;

  • Promote credentialing and licensing opportunities for veterans; and

  • Coordinate and participate with other business outreach efforts.

          ▪ Connecticut’s LVERs are part of CTDOL’s Business Services team. Their contact information may be found here.

American Job Center Locations for Accessing Veterans’ Services