A pilot program to provide jobs to disabled veterans will kick off this month between Westlake Village-based CallSource, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the nonprofit Center for Living and Learning and the Valley Economic Alliance. CallSource, which provides call tracking, recording and evaluation services, will employ four veterans for a period of three to six months, starting Oct. 18. Those involved in the pilot program say their hope is to grow the program to include more veterans and job providers. “Our goal by this time next year is… we will have 40 (employed veterans), and in the subsequent year we will have 400,” said Kenn Phillips, a vice president with the Valley Economic Alliance. The Veterans Affairs Department will select veterans to participate in the jobs program, and the Center for Living and Learning in Van Nuys will provide the workspace for the venture. “We already operate a call center for disadvantaged and low-income people and this fits right in,” said Marie Alexander, the center’s executive director. CallSource CEO Jerry Feldman has been helping veterans with job training and employment since 2009. He started the company’s Pride America program, applying a training system developed for employees at CallSource to veterans and assisting them in finding jobs in real estate as leasing agents, maintenance, marketing and management. Plans are to expand the program to train veterans for sales and other jobs at car dealerships. “At a minimum we owe them jobs to reintegrate them into our civil society,” Feldman said. Veterans chosen for the pilot program will listen to phone calls and grade the performance of the CallSource clients as they receive incoming calls from their customers. Working at CallSource requires good listening skills and an ability to understand the nuances of a conversation, Feldman said. “They cannot be distracted doing other things when on a call. They have to be focused.” Call for assistance Feldman was drawn to participate in the pilot program for several reasons. Along with an untapped labor pool, the company is able to engage potential clients through its support of an important cause. Additionally, Feldman said, it’s a way to return thanks to the service men and women of his adopted homeland. He emigrated to the U.S. in 1949, after having spent World War II in Russia where he fled with his mother from the Germans. Nationwide, the employable veterans’ population was 21.1 million as of September with an unemployment rate of 6.7 percent, which was lower than the 7.8 percent unemployment rate for September, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The jobless rate for veterans who have served on active duty since September 2001, however, was 9.7 percent last month, according to the bureau. Local representatives from the VA were unable to be reached as of press time. Feldman said experience with the Pride America program taught him that military training is the best training a person can receive for the workplace. Veterans get the job done regardless of the resources on hand, he said. “They have a commitment to team work and a commitment to their teammates,” Feldman said. Although veterans would be able to do telephone work from their homes, program leaders sought to place former military personnel into a team environment to reduce isolation and create camaraderie. “It will help them emotionally to put them back into that setting,” Feldman said. Veterans chosen to work for CallSource are expected to stay for several months before transitioning to full-time employment elsewhere. Participants also can benefit from the services the Center for Living and Learning provides to its regular clientele, such as computer training, writing resumes, preparing for a job interview, and keeping a job. “It is more than just work the veterans need,” Alexander said. “They need a support system.”
Westlake Village Firm Dials Up Disabled Veterans
