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Among employed veterans age 18 or older, the most common occupations for men are professional and related; management, business, and financial operations; and service occupations. In 2014, these three groups accounted for 50 percent of all employed men who had previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces. These were also the largest occupational groups among male nonveterans. Male veterans were more likely than nonveterans to work in transportation and material moving and installation, maintenance, and repair occupations. Male veterans were less likely to work in construction occupations.
Occupation | Veterans (all service periods) | Gulf War era II | Gulf War era I | WW II, Korean War, and Vietnam era | Other service periods | Nonveterans |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
Professional and related occupations | 19.8 | 20.8 | 22.0 | 18.6 | 18.1 | 22.9 |
Management, business, and financial operations occupations | 17.4 | 14.1 | 18.3 | 20.5 | 16.4 | 15.9 |
Service occupations | 14.1 | 16.9 | 14.0 | 12.5 | 13.4 | 17.6 |
Transportation and material moving occupations | 10.2 | 8.3 | 8.9 | 11.0 | 12.4 | 5.8 |
Sales and related occupations | 9.4 | 9.2 | 8.6 | 12.5 | 7.6 | 10.6 |
Office and administrative support occupations | 8.4 | 9.7 | 8.9 | 6.7 | 8.4 | 12.5 |
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations | 7.3 | 8.1 | 7.7 | 6.0 | 7.3 | 3.1 |
Production occupations | 7.1 | 7.2 | 6.6 | 5.9 | 8.7 | 5.7 |
Construction and extraction occupations | 5.8 | 5.5 | 4.8 | 5.6 | 7.3 | 5.2 |
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.7 |
Occupation | Veterans (all service periods) | Gulf War era II | Gulf War era I | WW II, Korean War, and Vietnam era | Other service periods | Nonveterans |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
Professional and related occupations | 17.9 | 19.3 | 18.8 | 18.0 | 15.8 | 18.3 |
Management, business, and financial operations occupations | 17.6 | 14.1 | 17.9 | 20.9 | 16.6 | 16.8 |
Service occupations | 14.1 | 16.2 | 14.9 | 12.3 | 13.3 | 14.2 |
Transportation and material moving occupations | 11.2 | 9.2 | 10.1 | 11.3 | 13.8 | 9.6 |
Sales and related occupations | 9.7 | 9.0 | 8.9 | 12.7 | 7.8 | 10.2 |
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations | 8.2 | 9.6 | 9.1 | 6.2 | 8.3 | 5.9 |
Production occupations | 7.8 | 7.9 | 7.6 | 6.1 | 9.7 | 7.9 |
Office and administrative support occupations | 6.6 | 7.9 | 6.9 | 5.9 | 6.1 | 6.1 |
Construction and extraction occupations | 6.5 | 6.5 | 5.6 | 5.8 | 8.2 | 10.0 |
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 1.1 |
Occupation | Veterans (all service periods) | Gulf War era II | Gulf War era I | WW II, Korean War, and Vietnam era | Other service periods | Nonveterans |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
Professional and related occupations | 33.1 | 28.0 | 37.7 | 36.0 | 32.3 | 27.6 |
Office and administrative support occupations | 20.4 | 18.1 | 18.8 | 28.6 | 23.1 | 19.0 |
Management, business, and financial operations occupations | 16.4 | 14.2 | 20.5 | 9.9 | 15.2 | 14.9 |
Service occupations | 14.4 | 19.9 | 9.3 | 16.8 | 14.1 | 21.1 |
Sales and related occupations | 7.8 | 10.4 | 7.0 | 6.6 | 6.3 | 11.0 |
Transportation and material moving occupations | 3.2 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 0.5 | 3.7 | 2.0 |
Production occupations | 2.5 | 4.0 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 3.5 |
Construction and extraction occupations | 1.1 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 1.9 | 0.3 |
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 0.9 | 0.2 |
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
Female veterans were most likely to work in professional and related; office and administrative support; and management, business, and financial operations occupations. Seventy percent of women who were veterans worked in these occupations. Nonveteran women were less likely to work in these occupations. Female veterans were more likely than nonveterans to work in professional and related occupations.
Veterans of Gulf War era II and nonveterans had similar occupational profiles in 2014 after accounting for gender. One-third of employed veteran and nonveteran men worked in management and professional occupations, a higher proportion than in any other major occupational group. Among employed women, just over 40 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans and nonveterans worked in management and professional occupations.
These data are from the Current Population Survey. For more information, see "Employment Situation of Veterans — 2014" (HTML) (PDF). Veterans are men and women who have previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and who were civilians at the time of the survey.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Employment of veterans by occupation, 2014 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2015/employment-of-veterans-by-occupation-2014.htm (visited October 31, 2024).