WORKFORCE
“I have learned that employment is not always guaranteed at the next duty station.”
of Army NAF employees eligible for the program increased from 7,000 to 22,000.
WHERE’S THE REMOTE? In addition to expanding transfer programs, remote job opportunities are another realistic solution DOD has already used while sustaining support of mission requirements. Continuing and expanding DOD remote positions, to spouses and to the public, that have been remote since the COVID-19 pandemic would allow family members to apply and keep their jobs when it is time to move within the U.S. and to approved overseas locations. Currently, domestic employee telework- ing overseas (DETO) agreements are rare, with cost and security cited as factors. However, staying remote could cost-effec- tively assist the military in filling gaps as it also faces recruitment shortcomings. Te Army fell short on its 2022 active-duty recruitment goals by 25 percent.
The workforce demonstrated remote capabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced government and industry offices to find ways to continue their missions 100 percent digitally or in hybrid formats. DOD continued to meet mission requirements and provided new and improved ways of doing business, for example, remote training capabilities for foreign military sales programs (see “Perseverance is the Key” on AL&T News). Going remote also increased employee productivity, engagement and
overall civilian workforce satisfaction with leadership.
Te Pentagon’s inspector general said that 88 percent of respondents surveyed on teleworking practices reported that their productivity increased while working from home or was as productive as they were in the office. So remote capabilities are not only possible, but the way of the future force if DOD is willing to accept it.
A memorandum from the Deputy Secre- tary of Defense Kathleen H. Hicks said, “Even before the pandemic, DOD policy has been for telework to be actively promoted and authorized for the maxi- mum number of positions to the extent that mission readiness is not jeopardized. … Continuation of flexibilities used during the COVID-19 pandemic increases the DOD’s efficiency and effectiveness, as well as allows the Department to better attract and retain those with the necessary skills and abilities needed to accomplish current and future missions.”
Yet, despite these lessons learned and state- ments from leadership, many DOD offices have chosen to mandate that all Army civilians, no matter their role and ability to continue the mission while fully remote, return physically to the office, whereby even one day per week effectively elimi- nates those roles for mobile military and civilian spouses and prolongs position vacancies.
CONCLUSION While the Army remains inconsistent with any real change to military family employment issues, it doesn’t stop hard- working spouses like Raulerson from staying positive and continuing to support our warfighters in any way she can.
“I have learned that employment is not always guaranteed at the next duty station,” Raulerson said, “but I am hopeful that wherever my spouse receives PCS [perma- nent change of station] orders to next, I am able to continue reaching for my own professional career goals in contracting by gaining new skills, while also sharing my abilities with my new team.”
For more family members
information, veterans and seeking
employment
in the U.S. or overseas can reach out to their local employment readiness special- ist at the Army Community Service office on post for additional in-person guidance and resume assistance. To view the Army civilian and veteran employment resource guide, go to:
https://api.army.mil/e2/c/ downloads/2022/09/29/bd7cb845/ navigating-civilian-employment-dtd- 21sep2022.pdf.
HOLLY DECARLO-WHITE provides contract support to
the U.S. Army
Acquisition Support Center at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, as a writer and editor at Army AL&T magazine for SAIC. Previously, she was a public affairs specialist at U.S. Army Garrison Stuttgart, Germany. She holds a B.S. in merchandising management from the Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York and has more than a decade of communications and operations experience in the private sector.
CONTRIBUTOR: Ellen Summey, U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center and SAIC.
https://
asc.ar my.mil 99
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