Influencer Caleb Hammer featured a retired military veteran on his podcast. The ex-military revealed how much he made with VA and from his job at a roofing company.

The man said he earned more than $5,000 monthly and used it to support his wife and four children. @calebhammercomposer featured a former U.S. Military personnel on his podcast and shared a brief snippet from the episode on TikTok.

The video has been viewed over 1.3 million times by his followers. In the clip, Hammer asked his guest two standard questions: “What do you do for a living?” and “What do you make?”

For a living, the man worked at a roofing company and earned about $1000 every week. That was not his only source of income. He also earns about $4,646 from Veterans Affairs (VA).

Overall, the guest earns over $5,000 as a former military personnel and a roofing employee. The man did not specifically mention whether or not he was disabled.

But in the video, Hammer mentioned, “I don’t know if I would want a disabled person on the top of roofs, doing roofing.” In response to the host’s remarks, the guest replied, “Right.” 

On X, @WallStreetApes shared the viral TikTok on their verified account amassing nearly 630,000 views. The account claimed he makes the $4646 for being “disabled” and commented on the man’s job after serving in the U.S. Military.

The account asked, “How does a disabled person work on roofs? This system is broken.” The account also claimed to have verified whether earning an additional income apart from VA, was legal. 

The Retired Military Man Sparked a Divide on X

According to the IRS, veterans receiving VA disability compensation are not restricted from earning additional income. VA disability benefits can also cover conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder. 

Many users on X were split over the concept of VA. Some seemed to agree with Hammer’s perspective on a disabled individual working in roofing. One user explained the concept of VA, and talked about it’s purpose. 

The user wrote, “It’s compensation for a permanent injury incurred in service. It’s more like a settlement.” Another individual called medical retirement one of the “biggest scams” in the world. 

They said, “Some soldiers with genuine conditions? Sure. But there’s a vast majority of young soldiers looking for a guaranteed (essentially) “retirement check.””