ABSTRACT

Military spouses face numerous challenges in obtaining employment as a result of their connection to the military. Previous research has linked military spouses underemployment to reduced well-being and satisfaction with military life, which in turn impacts on retention of the service person. In response to this the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) trialed a 2 year programme of employment support for spouses in 2015. This paper reports the findings of a qualitative evaluation of this programme and its impact on spouses. Interviews were carried out with 30 spouses and 23 of their serving partners to examine the benefits and impact of the support provided. The majority of spouses and their serving partners perceived the employment support as providing a positive contribution from the military to help spouses get back into employment or improve their employability. Additionally, spouses felt invested in by the military and valued as constituents in their own right. No impact of employment support for spouses on the intention to remain or leave the Armed Forces was identified. Longitudinal follow up will be required to determine any long-term impact of employment support on employment outcomes and retention.

摘要

军人配偶由于与军人有联系而在就业方面面临许多挑战。先前的研究将军人配偶的就业不足与军人生活的福祉和满意度降低联系在一起，而这反过来又影响了在役人员的保留。为此，英国国防部于2015年试用了一项为期两年的配偶就业支持计划。本文报告了对该计划进行定性评估的结果及其对配偶的影响。与30个配偶及其23个在职伙伴进行了访谈，以考察所提供支持的好处和影响。大多数配偶及其在职伙伴认为，就业支持是军方提供的积极贡献，可帮助配偶重新就业或改善其就业能力。此外，配偶感到自己已被军队投资，并被视为具有独立权利的成员。没有发现为配偶提供就业支持对留守或离开武装部队的意图有影响。需要纵向跟踪以确定就业支持对就业结果和保留的任何长期影响。