See featured transportation companies: Pages 10-11 CivilianJOBS.com’s
The Essential Military-to-Civilian Transition Resource
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March - April 2015
militarytransitionnews.com
Transportation Offers a Wide Open Road for Job Opportunities by Heidi Lynn Russell Contributing Editor
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obs in the transportation industry are so vast - for those in the enlisted ranks, all the way up to senior officers - that the only place a job seeker can go wrong is signing up with a company that isn’t right for them, recruiters say. This is especially true in the trucking arena, which is grasping for qualified candidates due to a retiring workforce. With many states greasing the skids for veterans by waiving license and certification requirements in various transportation occupations, it’s becoming easier than ever for job seekers to land a lucrative position. In short, as a veteran, you’re a hot commodity, says Dr. Laurence Shatkin, author of 150 Best Jobs Through Military Training. “The military does a massive amount of transportation, from troops to materials, and it uses
many of the same modes of transportation that the civilian economy uses. Therefore, many veterans enter the civilian job market with valuable experience and skills,” Shatkin says, adding that the military is probably the best place to learn skills for transportation security. Recruiters are attracted by your work habits that are part of every military job: teamwork and a sense of responsibility; acceptance of a chain of command; going by the book and keeping proper documentation; being able to improvise when necessary to accomplish the mission; and being able to work in diverse locations and with diverse populations. “Also, many transportation jobs are not sedentary and require physical fitness,” Shatkin says. Outlook for Transportation Jobs Transportation is a major segment of the economy and includes the postal service,
warehousing and pipelines, as well as the trucking, airline and shipping industries. “Like most industries, it suffered a setback during the Great Recession, as the dip in business activity resulted in less need to move goods, less business spending on out-oftown meetings and less consumer spending on vacations. However, it has bounced back from that lull and is expected to continue to grow. In the short run, the low price of diesel and jet fuel will contribute to large profits by carriers,” Shatkin says. One out of every seven jobs in the United States is transportationrelated, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. However, the outlook for different transportation segments varies. The railroads carry 40 percent of the goods shipped in the United
Schneider’s Ride of Pride trucks and military veteran drivers
States, but the infrastructure is suffering from years of neglect and is holding back growth, even as it strains under the demands of large shipments of oil and crops, Shatkin says. As stated earlier, the trucking industry has an increasing shortage of qualified drivers, so a wide swath of jobs is available. And in the airlines, “job growth has been held back, as repeated mergers have created redundancies. But the pace of consolidation seems likely to slow simply because there are so few players left,” he says. Some potential jobs for former military officers include piloting an aircraft or ship, managing a store or warehouse, planning logistics and managing maintenance of
transportation equipment. Former enlisted personnel have possible careers that include specialist jobs working with cargo, logistics, petroleum supply, preventive maintenance, driving, navigating and warehousing, Shatkin says. Trucking: A Good Bet for Job Seekers There is currently a shortage in the trucking industry for Class A Commercial Drivers, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Hiring Our Heroes Trucking Track Program (called FASTPORT). The trucking industry has committed to hiring more than 100,000 continues page 4
Life On The Racing SERKET by Janet Farley Contributing Editor
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urry up and wait. If you’ve spent any amount of time in uniform or are married to a spouse in uniform, you can relate to the concept. Now that you’re transitioning out of the camouflaged world and into a civilian one, why not forget about all that waiting and just hurry up? A cool career in the fast lane of the motorsports industry will do
that for you. We recently checked in with SERKET Racing driver Mark Llano who races a Porsche GT3 Cup 911 in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama, the largest single-make racing series in North America. In the process, we learned some important things from this former U.S. Marine about working and winning in the career field, both on and off the track.
It’s Not Your Average Day Job Your desk has four wheels. The elevator music consists of the thundering roar of finely tuned engines racing by at deathdefying speeds. Your spacious and circular cubicle is crowded with wildly cheering fans. You care deeply about the quality of work performed by your coworkers because it’s a matter of your life and death, literally. Everyone in this office watches the clock.
It’s not ”9-to-5” and that could work for you. After all, you’re familiar with the concept of a dangerous job, right? “The motorsport industry is a fast-paced environment. It’s a different [kind of] adrenaline where you’re not pulling the trigger,” says Llano, who not only drives SERKET’s car, but is also the co-founder, along with business continues page 8
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Transition Talk: Position or Industry? ....................page 3
Spouse Series: The Results Are In ........... page 5
Career Coach’s Corner:
Finance:
Job Fairs:
Is Sales Your Next Career? ..... page 15
Tax Season Tips .............page 16
Coming to Your Area ................page 18