A Qualitative Study of Veteran Clients Using Employment and Housing Services in Southern California: Exploring the Risk Factors to Persistent Employment Problems

Background and Purpose:

The majority of veterans transitioning to civilian life tend to be resilient, able to adapt, and transition to the civilian workplace successfully. There are, however, many veterans who do not make this transition effectively. Research has revealed that difficulty in transitioning to civilian life is largely attributable to challenges finding employment. Current literature highlights difficulties such as the translation of military experience and skills to the civilian work context, and mental and physical health problems, as leading reasons why some veterans find transitioning to civilian life and securing regular employment challenging. Much of this research has been conducted using survey data and with pre 9/11 veterans. The current study sought to investigate the experiences of veterans who have experienced profound employment and economic challenges. The aim of the research was to gain deep experiential data using a qualitative method to improve our understanding of the experiences of veterans in terms of the economic and employment challenges they face.

Methods:

Four focus groups with thirty-three veterans currently using housing and employment services in Los Angeles were conducted. Two of the focus groups included veterans who served before 9/11 (n=16) while the other two included veterans who served post 9/11 (n=17). The amount time since the veteran participants had left service ranged from 1 year to over 30 years. Participants served across all branches and had various employment experiences since leaving. Semi-structured interview schedules were created to guide the focus groups and asked open ended questions covering the following topics: experiences of gaining employment since leaving service; methods used to find employment; barriers faced in finding employment; challenges in maintaining employment; and their experiences of using available veteran employment and housing services. All focus groups lasted approximately one hour, were recorded using an electronic recording device, and later transcribed by a professional transcription service. Thematic analysis was used to analyze all transcripts. Each focus group was initially analyzed in isolation before looking for common themes and divergence within emerging themes across all four transcripts.

Results:

Thematic analysis of the four transcripts led to the emergence of seven initial themes. These seven initial themes were categorized into two master themes based on the application of Military Transition Theory. The master theme “Approaching the military transition” was represented by the sub-themes Unprepared for civilian employment, Un-addressed mental Health and substance misuse problems, and Less than honorable discharge. “Managing transition” was represented by the sub-themes; continuation of military identity, employer stigma towards veterans, criminal record, and availability of suitable work.

Conclusion:

It is evident that for these vulnerable veterans, pre and post transition factors contribute to their employment challenges. Based on these themes several recommendations were made including establishing a civilian “re-training” program for new veterans that clearly articulate some of the unique challenges that may affect military veterans in the transition process, provision of specific programs to assist those with less than honorable discharges and criminal records, and raising the importance of seeking help for mental health problems.