North Country Congressman Bill Owens is co-sponsoring a bill that gives hiring preference to veterans who apply for jobs in the Veteran Affairs health care system.

The bill is known as the Veterans’ Assistance to Lower Unemployment and Enhance VA Services Act (VALUES Act).

The legislation would direct the Department of Veterans Affairs to give greater hiring preference to veterans who apply for jobs in the VA health care system.

“This legislation further enlists the VA as an ally to veterans transitioning back into civilian life, helping them build the skills and experience they need to start a new career, ”said Owens, the Democrat from Plattsburgh who will not be seeking reelection in November.

“Whether they returned to a struggling economy sometime in the past or they’re flying home to find a job today, our nation’s veterans have earned this access to good jobs at the VA.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that approximately 9 percent of the 2.3 million American workers who served in active duty since September 2001 were unemployed in 2013. By comparison, the 2013 national average unemployment rate was 7.4 percent.

Bureau of Labor Statistics report: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/vet.pdf