Governor Doug Ducey today launched a plan to nearly double veterans in the state workforce, building on his commitment to hire veterans and make Arizona the best state for veterans in the country.“Arizona has a message for the men and women who’ve served our country in uniform – we value your experience, we value your skills and we want you to come work for our state,” said Governor Ducey. “The State of Arizona currently employs about 3,200 veterans. We want to double that number and bring more of these patriots into public service.”Achieving that goal is the top priority of AZHiresVets!, a recruitment effort coordinated by the Governor’s Office, the Arizona Coalition for Military Families and the Arizona Departments of Administration, Veterans’ Services and Economic Security.

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The multi-year, interagency veteran hiring initiative aims to increase the percentage of veterans in the state’s workforce from 8.5 percent to 15 percent by 2025.“Veterans are in such high demand in today’s highly competitive job market,” said Emily Rajakovich, Arizona’s Human Resources Director. “Veterans selflessly and willingly chose to dedicate themselves to serving our country. As natural leaders and problem solvers, these are exactly the kind of men and women we want to join the State’s ranks.”Rajakovich noted that veterans embody a “service before self” spirit, and typically are disciplined, fearless and have a strong work ethic. Governor Ducey emphasized the value of a veteran workforce in his 2022 State of the State, noting:“We are blessed to be a magnet for America’s veterans. They represent the best of our country, and as any hiring manager will tell you: Veterans are among their most prized and productive employees.”AZHiresVets! builds upon that commitment by directly connecting job seeking veterans with state agency recruiters and hiring managers.Two hiring events will be held on March 30 and April 28 in Phoenix. Registration will open the first week of March. For more information on the available opportunities with the State of Arizona, please visit the AZStateJobs website. BACKGROUND

Governor Ducey has been dedicated to putting veterans first by lowering barriers to work. Arizona in 2017 launched the Be Connected program, which helps prevent veteran suicide by focusing on upstream prevention in the military, veteran and family population. The program connects Arizona service members, veterans, and their families to information, support and resources, across all social determinants of health, including employment, housing, essential needs, physical and mental health, and more through a statewide support line.Veterans across the state can use the ADVS Veteran Toolkit to access the resources and supplies needed to start working and connect with job opportunities. The Toolkit launched in 2017 and assists veterans with uniforms, work boots, tools, and more.In addition, the Arizona Roadmap to Veteran Employment is a statewide effort that focuses on connecting service members, veterans, and their family members to employment opportunities, training, and resources. It was developed in partnership by ADVS, Arizona Coalition for Military Families, and public and private sector partners and shareholders.Further supporting veterans, Governor Ducey in 2021 signed the state budget which eliminated all state income taxes on veterans’ military pensions. In addition, Governor Ducey in partnership with the Arizona Department of Housing, allocated $500,000 toward combating homelessness among Arizona’s veterans.