Help Wanted: Military Spouse Employment

By Erin Moeser-Whittle, Ph.D.
SIOP Military Veterans Inclusion Ad Hoc Committee

When many civilians think about showing appreciation to military service members and their families, the most common things that come to mind are military discounts, streets lined with people for the Veteran’s Day parade, and shouts of “Thank you for your service!” But one of the potentially most helpful ways of supporting our military is one that is less likely thought of­­—employing military spouses. 

Employment has consistently ranked at or near the top concerning issues for military spouses for decades. According to the most recent Blue Star Families Military Families Experience Survey (2020), over half (52%) of active-duty spouses ranked employment as their top concern, with 30% being employed full time, and 17% employed part time. The survey also found that 35% of active-duty spouses are unemployed but desire employment, and the national unemployment rate of military spouses is around 20%, nearly triple the 3% unemployment rate of civilian spouses. For the first time in the survey’s history, spouse employment was rated as a top five concern for active-duty service members. This annual survey is notable as it is one of the only consistent sources of information on military spouse employment rates.   

Unsurprisingly, the COVID-19 pandemic and associated shut-downs and transition to remote schooling had a major impact on military spouse employment, as it did for many civilian families. The Blue Star Families survey results indicate that 42% of active-duty spouses stopped working at some point during the pandemic, and 49% had decreased their work hours. The top reported barrier to military spouse employment is access/affordability of childcare. Although this is an issue for workers at large, military spouses may face greater challenges due to their service member’s demanding work schedules, military deployment and 24/7 training schedules, and the closure and limited availability of childcare centers on residential military installations. 

In addition to affordable childcare, state licensing and certification is a big concern, with approximately 30-34% of military spouses working in positions such as teaching, nursing, and mental health. Steps have been taken in past years to make the transfer of licenses and certifications more portable, with 26 states requiring license recognition and at least 32 states offering licensure by endorsement (offering licensure to those who hold it in states with comparable standards), but it remains difficult for many spouses to transfer between states when the military requires the service member spouse to move every 1 to 4 years for a new assignment.

So, what can I-O psychologists do to help military spouses find and maintain gainful and meaningful employment? Recognizing that military spouses average approximately the same job tenure of civilian employees is a start—the Department of Labor states that military spouse employment tenure is in line with that of the civilian workforce. One of the biggest misconceptions of military spouse applicants (both from the employer and applicant perspective) is that they will spend less time in a job position compared to their civilian counterparts due to the frequency of military moves (affecting not only job selection and hire rates, but professional development opportunities and promotion opportunities also).  Approaching military spouse applicants in the same way as civilian applicants may help alleviate the unemployment and underemployment numbers experienced in the community.

Many of the concerns and barriers to employment expressed by military spouses align with the SIOP 2021 Top 10 Work Trends—namely remote work and flexible work arrangements and work–life integration. As I-O professionals are looking to address the needs of working individuals overall by offering more flexible working arrangements such as remote work, flexible schedules, and increased options for childcare, they can incorporate the needs of the military spouse population to ease the burden of frequent moves, unpredictable schedules of their service members, and difficulties obtaining quality childcare. 

For those who are interested in improving their organization’s practices and policies regarding military spouse employment, there is a multitude of resources (please note, SIOP does not endorse any organization—this is just a small sampling of resources available to both employers and military spouses), including Blue Star Families, the Institute for Veteran and Military Families, the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, and Military OneSource. 

The SIOP Military Veterans Inclusion Ad Hoc Committee will share articles in the Source throughout November as part of its efforts to increase workplace resources and their dissemination to support those in the military community (e.g., veterans, guard and reservists, military spouses) employed in civilian settings and employers of veterans.

References:

https://bluestarfam.org/survey/#reports

https://www.militaryfamily.org/licensing-certification/

https://www.militaryonesource.mil/education-employment/for-spouses/education-training-licensing/transferring-your-professional-license-what-s-involved/

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/veterans/military-spouses

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/veterans/military-spouses/license-recognition

https://www.ncsl.org/research/military-and-veterans-affairs/military-spouse-employment-policies.aspx

https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WB/mib/WB-MilSpouse-factsheet.pdf