“Most people don’t realize the wide range of services that American Job Centers offer. You’re not walking into the unemployment office, you’re walking into the employment office,” according to Lori Adams, director, veterans policy and senior National Labor Exchange advisor, National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA).

WorkingNation sat down with Adams at the NASWA Veterans Conference in Washington, D.C., the organization’s annual conference around hiring in the military-connected community.

NASWA members staff nearly 2,300 American Job Centers nationwide, helping people search for jobs, find training, and answer other employment-related questions. For veterans and military spouses, the state agencies also help them access their skills in order to figure out how their military skills can translate into civilian careers.

“They’ll help them with aptitude testing to identify their skills and then figure out what jobs require those skills. Many veterans had a military occupational specialty and they forget that it’s not so much about what they did in the military, it’s about the skills that they acquired. At the American Job Center they match those skills to local employers who are hiring and looking for people that have those skills already,” says Adams.

She adds that veterans are well-trained, follow instructions, and are great team players. “There’s so many things that employers want from a good worker. The veteran needs to understand what they have to offer to that employer and the American Job Center can help them with that.”

Learn more about the National Association of State Workforce Agencies.