National Programs

Veteran Employment

About

True Patriot Love’s holistic, systems-level approach to Veteran employment features cross-sector collaboration to educate and raise awareness of the skills and leadership talent of Canada’s Veterans.

Background

Military to civilian transition is a complex process that requires thoughtful consideration of several key factors, including the needs of family, re-defining purpose and, if desired, finding a suitable career path for civilian employment.

Employment is important to health, well-being and adjustment from military to civilian life. Over the past ten years, an average of 8,200 Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members were released each year with approximately half of those Veterans seeking new career opportunities, with many years of employment ahead of them.

According to results from the 2021 Census, almost one-third (32.0%) of Veterans were in the core working age group of 25 to 54 years. Veterans include uniquely talented job-seekers who have the potential to make a huge contribution to Canada’s economy. Not only are CAF members trained extensively and have experience and skills that include leadership, operations, strategic thinking and teamwork, but many have also received university and vocational certifications while serving in the military. Yet, certain Veteran sub-populations outcomes are so varied, a targeted approach is needed to foster improvement and understanding in employment outcomes where most needed.

‍

2021 Census- Veteran Employment Overview

True Patriot Love will consider proposals that focus on supporting the following themes:

461,240 Canadians were counted as Veterans
Almost one-third of Veterans were in the core working age group of 25-54 (32%)
The unemployment rate among Veterans was reported to be slightly lower than the general population, standing at 8.6% compared to 10% for the Canadian public during the 2021 Census
Approximately 13% of Veterans earned income through self-employment compared to 15.4% in the general population
Over 65,000 Veterans aged 25-65 were not actively engaged in the labour force, meaning that they were unable or unavailable for work, or not actively looking in the four weeks leading up to the Census
While Veteran participation rate in the workforce is lower than the Canadian public, the Census identified that Veterans aged 25-64 represent a potential workforce of 259,605 people
Women Veterans were less likely to participate in the labour force than other Veterans and the Canadian public
Indigenous Veterans were shown as having higher unemployment rates than other Indigenous people
At the time of the 2021 Census, Statistics Canada reported that there were 731,905 vacant jobs in Canada

Build the Future: Veteran Transition, Employment & Retention Initiative

True Patriot Love’s focus on Building a Veteran Ready Canada is rooted in experience gained through the Veteran Transition Advisory Council and a pilot project, Building a Veteran Friendly Ontario. With our collaborators, this pilot focused on the following:

To understand the landscape of service providers, and form multi-sectoral collaborations to develop a strategy to create/enhance models for successful Veteran transition and employment in Ontario
To build on this greater connectivity and grow a Veteran friendly community to network, share experience, tools and resources; to identify opportunities across the province that could be scaled up on a national basis

Working with civilian employers, we set to build a sustainable, scalable strategy to support Veteran transition, hiring and retention, and create a greater military cultural understanding between corporations and Veterans, with a focus on larger employers. This work aimed to reduce barriers to Veterans’ employment by educating employers and build capacity with tools and knowledge to attract and retain Veterans in the Ontario workforce. With our partners, this effort included working to better understand and map the landscape of providers serving Veterans’ military to civilian employment transition and identify promising practices.

Employment Ecosystem Connect

True Patriot Love's Employment Ecosystem Connect series brings together employers, government representatives, military stakeholders, Veteran-serving organizations, and community partners to strengthen Veteran employment outcomes across Canada through the Building a Veteran Ready Canada (BVRC) initiative.

The events are designed to:

Create a community of industry leaders committed to improving Veteran recruitment, retention, and career advancement.
Map the Veteran employment ecosystem and identify gaps, opportunities, and areas for collaboration.
Educate employers on the value Veterans, Reservists, and military families bring to the workforce and the challenges they may face during transition.
Support the development and sharing of tools, resources, and leading practices that enhance Veteran recruitment, onboarding, and retention.

Since the launch of BVRC, Employment Ecosystem Connect events have been held in Vancouver, Halifax, and Calgary, with additional engagement and outreach extending into Ontario and Quebec, helping expand the initiative's impact nationally beyond the original Ontario pilot.

Supporting Small and Medium-Sized Businesses: Veteran Friendly Ontario Challenge

This was a hands-on and active learning training program to enrich small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) recruitment, onboarding, and hiring of Veterans in Ontario. This effort was led by project partner Challenge Factory, with the support of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. The Veteran Friendly Ontario Challenge focused on building Veterans’ civilian employment skills, while providing insight into small and medium-sized businesses, and in turn provided the opportunities to highlight Veteran talent, with the goal of exposing both groups to potential employment opportunities.

Diverse Veteran Populations Research Initiative

As part of the Building a Veteran Ready Canada initiative, funded through Veterans Affairs Canada's Veterans and Family Well-Being Fund, True Patriot Love is working to improve employment outcomes for Veterans, Reservists, and their families by strengthening employer readiness and fostering a more inclusive and responsive employment ecosystem.

While significant research exists on the Veteran population in Canada, there is an opportunity to better understand the unique employment-related experiences, barriers, and support needs of diverse Veteran populations, including women, Indigenous Peoples, 2SLGBTQ+ individuals, racialized communities, and Veterans living with disabilities.

This research initiative will help inform future programs, employer engagement strategies, and policy recommendations by identifying barriers to employment and highlighting opportunities to strengthen support systems and workplace inclusion. This work will also consider additional factors that may impact employment outcomes, including mental health challenges, addictions, caregiving responsibilities, and other circumstances that can affect transition to civilian employment or entrepreneurship.

The findings will support the continued evolution of Building a Veteran Ready Canada and help ensure future initiatives are informed by evidence and responsive to the needs of the Veteran community.

Resources

Veterans Affairs Canada Resources

Join the Hire a Veteran LinkedIn Group – Connect with professionals and organizations committed to hiring Veterans: LinkedIn Group. If you want to connect with Veterans Affairs Canada’s Veterans Employment Unit or participate in one of their employment events, please contact: hire-embauchez-veteran@veterans.gc.ca or Andrew.garsch@veterans.gc.ca
Employers Seeking to Hire Veterans – Discover companies actively hiring Veteran talent: Employer Hiring Portal
National Veterans Employment Strategy – Learn how Canada is working to improve employment outcomes for Veterans: Read More

Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Resources

CAF Transition Group National Resource Directory (NRD) – Online directory, with screened Military Veteran Family (MVF) friendly organizations, categorized by Domain of Well-being and MVF readiness. Connects MVF community with targeted and trusted supports, fostering national collaboration and knowledge-sharing supporting military-to-civilian transition: Explore Here
Military Spousal Employment Network (MSEN) – Engage the national MSEN recruitment platform to recruit military and Veteran spouses for your workforce: Read more here.
Chief Reserves and Employer Support — Supports Reserve Force members through key programs, including:
- With Glowing Hearts – In partnership with the Canadian Forces Liaison Council (CFLC), the With Glowing Hearts program recognizes organizations that support the CAF with military leave policies and provide Reserve Force employees the flexibility to continue serving their community and Canada
- Compensation for Employers of Reservists Program (CERP) — CERP provides financial support to civilian employers—and self-employed reservists—to help offset operational costs when a reservist-employee is away from the workplace due to military commitments

Other Resources

Challenge Factory: As part of the Building a Veteran Friendly Pilot in Ontario, Challenge Factory developed resources to help organizations build inclusive hiring practices for military Veterans. Click here to review tools and guidance to support Veteran employment and workforce integration.
Military 2 Civilian Employment: A Career Practitioner’s Guide: An essential resource for understanding the unique challenges and opportunities in supporting Veterans to successfully transition to civilian employment. Free downloadable PDFs are available in both English and French here. The English version is available for purchase on Amazon
Military Veteran Business Network: Treble Victor Group — With over 450 members across Canada, Treble Victor is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping former military members connect, network, and achieve their full potential in post-service career through networking, mentorship, and professional development to leverage their military experience and skills within the civilian job market
Prospect Human Services, Forces@WORK Program (F@W) Public Safety Personnel program is designed to address the unique challenges of leaving a career defined by public service. Whether overcoming physical, psychological, or emotional barriers, Prospect Human Services provides tools, support, and training to build a successful second career. Contact: 1.877.483.2562 or Email: info@prospectnow.ca