Questions and Answers Regarding the Veterans Employment Provisions of MAP-21, Section 1506

Answer 1: YES. Section 1506 requires recipients to encourage contractors and subcontractors working on Federal-aid highway projects to use best faith efforts in hiring veterans as laborers.

Answer 2: The free and open competition requirements of the 23 U.S.C. 112 are not altered by Section 1506.

Answer 3: NO. Section 1506 does not permit recipients to require preferential treatment for the employment of veterans. Rather, Section 1506 requires recipients to encourage contractors and subcontractors to make a best faith effort in the hiring or referral of veterans as laborers.

Answer 4: Recipients may encourage contractors and subcontractors in a variety of ways which may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Contract provisions encouraging contractors and subcontractors to hire veterans;
• Incentive provisions for hiring veterans; and
• Making resources available for contractors and subcontractors to use in the employment of veterans.

Answer 5: The following are examples of resources that recipients of Federal financial assistance can use to assist and support contractors and subcontractors working on Federal-aid construction contracts in employing veterans as laborers:

• Job classification crosswalks
  • My Next Move For Veterans – Career search by keyword, industry, military job
  • CareerOneStop – Military to Civilian Occupation Translator
  • State example: Maryland DOT “Crosswalk- Military to Maryland DOT Job Classifications”– A list of military job classifications that match the skills and abilities of a wide range of Maryland DOT job classifications.
• Services connecting employer to veterans including Job Banks
  • National Resource Directory (employment) – connects unemployed veterans to job openings with companies that want to hire veterans.
  • Veteran Recruiting Services – connects employers and veterans through virtual career fairs.
  • Joining Forces – includes employment resources
  • Helmets to Hardhats – connecting military members to careers in the construction industry.
  • Veterans Employment Center – an integrated employment tool to connect veterans and service members with employers, and to help translate military skills into the civilian workforce.
• Workforce development services
  • American Job Center Network – established by the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (ETA) as a unifying name and brand that identifies online and in-person workforce development services as part of a single network.
  • America’s Heroes at Work – USDOL project designed for employers and the workforce development system that provides links to information and tools to help returning service members and veterans living with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and/or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) succeed in the workplace.
  • Veterans Hiring Toolkit for Employers – A step-by-step toolkit designed to assist and education employers and the workforce development systems in recruiting and hiring transitioning service members, veterans and wounded warriors.
  • Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) – The VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 established two tax credit programs for veterans (Returning Heroes and Wounded Warrior). These programs are administered by State Workforce agencies.
    • How to apply for the Tax Credit programs
    • List of State WOTC Coordinators
    • February 23, 2012, AGC New, “IRS Issues Guidance for Employers on Tax Credit for Hiring Veterans.”

Answer 6: Veterans covered by Section 1506 of MAP–21 must satisfy the criteria at 5 U.S.C. 2108, which defines “veteran” as an individual who:

• Served on active duty in the armed forces during a war, in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized, or during the period beginning April 28, 1952, and ending July 1, 1955;
• Served on active duty as defined by 38 U.S.C. 101(21) at any time in the armed forces for a period of more than 180 consecutive days any part of which occurred after January 31, 1955, and before October 15, 1976, not including service under 10 U.S.C. 12103(d) pursuant to an enlistment in the Army National Guard or the Air National Guard or as a Reserve for service in the Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Air Force Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, or Coast Guard Reserve;
• Served on active duty as defined by 38 U.S.C. 101(21) in the armed forces during the period beginning on August 2, 1990, and ending on January 2, 1992; or
• Served on active duty as defined by 38 U.S.C. 101(21) at any time in the armed forces for a period of more than 180 consecutive days any part of which occurred during the period beginning on September 11, 2001, and ending on the date prescribed by Presidential proclamation or by law as the last date of Operation Iraqi Freedom; and
• Except as provided under 5 U.S.C. 2108a, who has been discharged or released from active duty in the armed forces under honorable conditions.

Answer 7: The veterans employment provision in MAP–21 does not establish “veteran” as an eligible minority and/or discriminated class of worker that is covered by the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) requirements. If a contractor uses best faith efforts in hiring veterans, these efforts must not result in a preference over any equally qualified applicant who is a member of any racial or ethnic minority, a female, or any equally qualified former employee.

Answer 8: YES. Section 1506 specifically states that section 114(d) shall not apply to projects subject to 23 U.S.C. 140(d).

Answer 9: YES. Section 1506 only applies to recipients of Federal assistance.