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Gulf War-era II veterans with a service-connected disability less likely to participate in the labor force

May 18, 2026

In August 2025, of the 5.8 million veterans with a service-connected disability, about half were Gulf War-era II veterans (2.8 million) who were on active duty at any time since September 2001. Among those Gulf War-era II veterans with a service-connected disability, 70 percent reported a disability rating of 60 percent or higher.

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Chart Data

Labor force participation rate for Gulf War-era II veterans by presence and degree of service-connected disability, August 2016 to August 2025
Year	Gulf War-era II veterans, total 18 years and over	Gulf War-era II veterans, with a service-connected disability	Gulf War-era II veterans, less than 30 percent disability rating	Gulf War-era II veterans, 30 to 50 percent disability rating	Gulf War-era II veterans, 60 percent or higher disability rating	Gulf War-era II veterans, without a service-connected disability
Aug 2016	82.6	76.0	87.6	86.6	63.4	86.6
Aug 2017	80.7	75.8	91.6	86.9	61.7	85.5
Aug 2018	81.1	73.5	88.6	82.5	62.3	85.8
Aug 2019	79.8	72.7	92.2	84.7	61.2	84.8
Aug 2020	81.5	73.8	91.5	86.5	63.6	87.7
Aug 2021	79.2	72.9	94.4	82.5	63.8	84.3
Aug 2022	80.2	74.3	94.8	79.8	65.9	86.3
Aug 2023	79.8	73.0	83.0	85.1	67.9	86.8
Aug 2024	81.2	77.3	90.0	79.8	74.5	84.8
Aug 2025	78.0	71.3	85.1	86.8	64.7	84.5

The labor force participation rate of Gulf War-era II veterans with a service-connected disability (71.3 percent) was lower than the rate for their counterparts with no service-connected disability (84.5 percent) in August 2025. Gulf War-era II veterans who reported a disability rating of less than 30 percent were more likely to be in the labor force than those with a rating of 60 percent or higher (85.1 percent compared with 64.7 percent).

These data are from the Current Population Survey. For more information, see "Employment Situation of Veterans — 2025." Also see labor force, employment, and unemployment statistics for veterans. Veterans are men and women who previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and were civilians when they were surveyed. People on active duty are not included in the survey. Gulf War-era II veterans served on active duty anywhere in the world at any time since September 2001.

Veterans are assigned a disability rating by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the U.S. Department of Defense. Ratings range from 0 to 100 percent, in increments of 10 percentage points, depending on the severity of the condition.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Gulf War-era II veterans with a service-connected disability less likely to participate in the labor force at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2026/gulf-war-era-ii-veterans-with-a-service-connected-disability-less-likely-to-participate-in-the-labor-force.htm (visited May 19, 2026).

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