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Unemployment Rate Skyrockets Agence France-Presse | November 14, 2005 WASHINGTON - The return to civilian life for U.S. Soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan is full of pitfalls, with an unemployment rate three times the national average. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says that for the first three quarters of 2005, nearly 15 percent of veterans aged 20-24 are jobless -- three times the national average. According to the website VeteransToday, published by veterans for veterans, the high unemployment rate is "partly because most service members seriously injured in Iraq and Afghanistan are in the early stages of their military careers and possess limited transferable job skills or very little civilian work experience". The government is also worried about the number of veterans without a permanent address. "The tragedy of homelessness among veterans persists, even when the economy is robust and unemployment is low," the California Department of Veterans Affairs said. "Homeless veterans require remedial education, job-search and counseling assistance, medical services and transitional housing in order to re-enter the labor market," the agency said in a statement.