Civilian Employment Research Articles

MOTIVATION AND SATISFACTION IN THE NATIONAL SECURITY ENVIRONMENT

This research has studied the relation between motivation and job satisfaction in a national security organization. Two questionnaires for motivation and professional satisfaction were used as assessment tools. The research group consisted of 80 militaries, respectively 80 civilian subjects representing the control group. Several types of relations were studied, considered relevant for the study objectives, such as: the relation between work motivation and management satisfaction and interpersonal relationships within the team, with respect to work organization and functional communication; the relation between the motivation for accomplishment through work and the degree of salary satisfaction, rewards and career advancement opportunities; the relation between the levels of general satisfaction and the motivation for accomplishment through work; the relation between the higher levels of satisfaction with work organization and functional communication, respectively with management and interpersonal relationships of the military group, compared to the control group of civilian employees. The results of this research have some practical value, advancing the possibility that some conclusions can be assimilated in the human resources policies of national security institutions, in order to optimize staff motivation and maximize performance

Improving Work–Life Balance for Female Civil Servants in Law Enforcement: An Exploratory Analysis of the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act

In late 2019, Congress passed the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act (FEPLA) establishing parental leave for most federal civilian employees. The new law provides up to 12 weeks of paid leave within 12 months after the birth, adoption, or foster placement of a child occurring on or after October 1, 2020. Despite its recent enactment, this study draws on survey data from 224 civil servants across 39 federal law enforcement agencies to examine the implications of FEPLA for improving work–life balance in the federal sector. Findings suggest that FEPLA will likely improve work–life balance for female civil servants. However, women may also be afraid to use FEPLA due to perceived loss of future promotional opportunities or other workplace visibilities.

Fellow Travellers: Communist Trade Unionism and Industrial Relations on the French Railways, 1914–1939

Fellow Travellers: Communist Trade Unionism and Industrial Relations on the French Railways, 1914–1939

Borrowing to Save? The Impact of Automatic Enrollment on Debt

ABSTRACTDoes automatic enrollment into a retirement plan increase financial distress due to increased borrowing outside the plan? We study a natural experiment created when the U.S. Army began automatically enrolling newly hired civilian employees into the Thrift Savings Plan. Four years after hire, automatic enrollmentincreases cumulative contributions to the plan by 4.1% of annual salary, but we find little evidence ofincreased financial distress. Automatic enrollment causes no significant change in credit scores, debt balances excluding auto debt and first mortgages, or adverse credit outcomes, with the possible exception of increasedfirst‐mortgage balances in foreclosure.

Self-Selection and Recruit Quality in Sweden’s All Volunteer Force: Do Civilian Opportunities Matter?

ABSTRACT This paper studies how local labour market conditions influence the quality composition of those who volunteer for military service in Sweden. A fixed-effects regression model is estimated on a panel data set containing IQ scores for those who applied for military basic training across Swedish municipalities during the period 2010 to 2016. The main finding is that low civilian employment rates at the local level tend to increase the mean IQ score of those who volunteer for military service, whereas the opposite is true if employment rates in the civilian labour market move in a more favourable direction. As such, the results suggest that the negative impact of a strong civilian economy on recruitment volumes is reinforced by a deterioration in recruit quality.

A Descriptive Analysis of Pediatric Transports Throughout the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.

BackgroundThe U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) has over 375,000 military personnel, civilian employees, and their dependents. Routine pediatric care is available in theater, but pediatric subspecialty, surgical, and intensive care often require patient movement. Transfer is frequently performed by military air evacuation teams and intermittently augmented by civilian services. Pediatric care requires special training and equipment, yet most transports are staffed by non-pediatric specialists. We seek to describe the epidemiology of pediatric transport missions in INDOPACOM.MethodsA retrospective review of all patients less than 18 years old transported within INDOPACOM and logged into the Transportation Command Regulating and Command and Control Evacuation System (TRAC2ES) database from June 2008 through June 2018 was conducted. Data are reported using descriptive statistics. Patients were categorized into four age groups: neonatal (<31 days), infant (31-364 days), young children (1 to <8 years), and older children (8-17 years).ResultsDuring the study period, 687 out of 4,217 (16.3%) transports were children. Median age was 4 years (interquartile range 6 months to 8 years) and 654 patients (95.2%) were transported via military fixed-wing aircraft. There were 219 (31.9%) neonates, 162 (23.6%) infants, 133 (19.4%) young children, and 173 (25.2%) older children. Most common diagnoses encountered were respiratory, cardiac, or abdominal, although older children had a higher percentage of psychiatric diagnoses (28%). Mechanical ventilation was used in 118 (17.2%) patients, and 75 (63.6%) of these patients were neonates.ConclusionsWithin TRAC2ES, nearly one in six encounters were patients aged <18 years, with neonates or infants representing nearly one of three pediatric encounters. Slightly more than one in six pediatric patients required intubation for transport. The data suggest the need for appropriately trained transport teams and equipment be provided to support these missions.

‘I’m not sick!…Are you?’ Groupthink in police services as a barrier to collecting mental health data

Despite the high prevalence of mental disorders among Canadian police officers, treatment-seeking is lower than expected. Toward understanding how mental health services can be tailored for higher utilization by police, we aim to uncover factors that contribute to stigma and barriers to use, specifically within the context of group dynamics between officers. Nine semi-structured focus groups and one interview were conducted with civilian and non-civilian police service employees in Ontario, Canada. Data were coded to allow for themes to emerge from the transcripts. Participant voices ( n=33) revealed the presence of three characteristics of Janis’ groupthink: high group cohesion, conditions that create high stress and low self-esteem, and operating under directive leadership; each creating pressures that serve as barriers to treatment-seeking [Janis IL (1972) Victims of Groupthink: A Psychological Study of Foreign-Policy Decisions And Fiascoes. Boston: Houghton Mifflin]. Groupthink offers a potential explanation about why police, despite a high prevalence of mental disorders and access to mental health services, do not seek treatment as expected. Janis’s theory of groupthink is supported by police officer dialogue in focus groups. Understanding police group interactions can better inform prevention and treatment programs, ultimately leading to better access and use of existing mental health services, a reduction in stigma associated with treatment-seeking, and a healthier police workforce.

Police employees working from home during COVID-19 lockdown: Those with higher score on extraversion miss their colleagues more and are more likely to socialize with colleagues outside work

There is a general opinion that extraverted people suffer more than introverted people in home-office arrangement and the social distancing regulation imposed by the government during the Corona Virus Disease 2019 pandemic (COVID-19). However, scarce research exists concerning how extraversion is associated with satisfaction with home-office arrangement, to what extent individuals miss their colleagues, level of stress, and whether they meet colleagues outside work during lockdown.An online survey was distributed in six police districts in Norway during late May and beginning of June, right before the most stringent measures for constraining risk of COVID-infection was lifted. 1133 out of 1472 reported that their work-situation was home-office, or combined home-office and physical attendance at work. Contrary to what expected, extraversion was not related to satisfaction with home-office arrangement when controlling for other relevant variables (i.e. stress, home-office only, living alone, age, gender and civilian employment). As hypothesized, those with a higher score on extraversion missed their colleagues more than those with low scores. There was a marginal, although significant, negative association between extraversion and stress, and a significant positive relationship between stress and the extent the respondents missed their colleagues during lockdown, independent of extraversion. The results showed a dose-response relationship between extraversion and meeting colleagues outside the work during lockdown.

Building effective networks for the transition from the military to the civilian workforce: Who, what, when, and how

ABSTRACT Servicemembers leaving the military and entering the civilian workforce are often encouraged to network to identify and obtain civilian employment. However, there are few resources that offer insights into how to build an effective network when transitioning from the military to the civilian workforce. Based on extant literature, we present a Guiding Framework for Building an Effective Network for the Military to Civilian Workforce Transition to answer questions of who Veterans should include in their professional and personal networks (“Who”), what social resources are available from network contacts (“What”) at which phase of the transition (“When”), and how to build relationships with network contacts that may facilitate the transition from the military to civilian workforce (“How”). This framework identifies four types of network contacts that Veterans may include in their networks: family members, other Veterans, civilians, and formal resources persons. Furthermore, we describe the social resources they are likely to receive from these contacts (e.g., love/friendship, information, services, status, money, and goods) at each stage of the transition (e.g. approaching the transition, managing the transition, and assessing the transition) as well as practical suggestions for Veterans to connect with these network contacts. Additionally, we explain how the resources provided by network contacts enable successful role/identity transition. Finally, we discuss practical implications of our framework for service members, and we propose directions for future research on Veterans’ networks and the role that they play during Veterans’ transition from the military to the civilian workforce.

Homesickness: a comparative study of defense and civilian employees and individual differences

PurposeMost of the studies in the field of homesickness are confined to students; this study aims to explore the feeling of homesickness among working professionals. Also, it tends to examine individual differences in the experience of homesickness across employees of different gender, ages, experience, family type, etc. The study also aspires to compare homesickness among military and civil employees.Design/methodology/approachThe study explores five dimensions of homesickness, namely, missing family, missing friend, rumination about home, feeling lonely and adjustment problems. The collected data is subjected to reliability, validity and confirmatory factor analysis. Further, t-test and analysis of variance are used to explore homesickness differences across soldiers and corporate employees.FindingsThe study reveals that homesickness is significantly higher for employees in the male, unmarried, nuclear family, above the age of 45 years, and below the graduation category. Also, defense people experience more homesickness than civilian employees.Originality/valueThis study is one of the pioneer studies that compare homesickness among defense and civilian employees. Also, variables such as type of family, the experience of employees and marital status have hardly been explored in the literature of homesickness.

Human Resource Development Before, During, and After Military Leave

The Problem Many organizations are ill-equipped to mitigate the talent management challenges associated with extended leave for military reservists. Today, reservists take more long-term leave from civilian employment than at any point in modern history, due to more frequent and longer periods of active service resulting from persistent conflict. Yet, there is a lack of research on managing the dual careers of military reservists, and limited guidance is available for human resource development (HRD) professionals. The Solution We propose that opportunity exists in the effective career management of reservists, who receive extensive military training. This article draws on inclusivity research to provide a model for managing the HRD aspects of extended military leave. Rather than focusing on the compliance aspects of military leave, we believe organizations can increase the performance, commitment, and career progression of reservists to better capitalize on the skills and competencies gained through military service. The Stakeholders This article offers practitioners of HRD and HRM insights into building inclusive organizations for military reservists. Implications may also be of interest to scholars of military psychology, military reservists, and military-connected employees.

„Dwójka” i miasto. Agendy polskiego wywiadu i kontrwywiadu wojskowego w międzywojennej Bydgoszczy (1920–1939)

In Bydgoszcz, with a population of just over 100,000, at least seven Polish military intelligence and counterintelligence agencies operated in the interwar period. They are discussed sequentially in the text. In total, taking into account the staff changes, several dozen officers of these services worked in the city, supported by hundreds of non-commissioned officers and civilian employees. It was a noticeable and specific professional group. Some city authorities assessed their presence in Bydgoszcz negatively, complaining and sending inspections.

Association of Risk Factors of Coronary Heart Diseases and Socio-demographic Characteristics of Civil Employees of Combined Military Hospital Dhaka

Introduction: Risk factors are the most ruinous and mischievous ingredient to develop coronary heart diseases (CHD). Factors contributing to develop CHD and their associates are, therefore, of prime importance. It needs endless splurge to address the issue.&#x0D; Objectives: To identify the attributing risk factors and socio-demographic characteristics of coronary heart disease among civilian employees of Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Dhaka.&#x0D; Materials and Methods: This observational study was conducted on 287 civil employees of CMH, Dhaka from September to December 2011. Data were collected by interview using questionnaire and check list which includes blood pressure measurement, anthropometric measurement and biochemical examinations.&#x0D; Results: Respondent’s age range was 23 to 59 years, educational level up to class VIII were 56.4 % and more than that were 36.6%, illiterate were 7%. Regarding income low, medium and high income group were 40.4%, 56.8% and 2.8% respectively. It was found that 68.6% had normal BP, 61.3% practices moderate exercise. Among the respondents 72.2% has got 1-5 risk factors of CHD. Risk factors (p &lt;0.001) were significantly associated with age.&#x0D; Conclusion: This study finding is suggestive of association between risk factors of CHD and socio-demographic characteristics among the study population. Care through motivation, avoidance of risk behaviour, addressing clinical conditions can resist risk factors of CHD thus coronary heart disease can be prevented.&#x0D; JAFMC Bangladesh. Vol 15, No 2 (December) 2019: 175-177

Work Fatigue Profiles: Nature, Implications, and Associations With Psychological Empowerment.

The present study examined the distinct configurations, or profiles, taken by work fatigue dimensions among samples of military (n = 1,436) and civilian (n = 2,477) employees. We also tested profile similarity across these two samples of employees. In addition, this research documented the relations between the identified work fatigue profiles, one predictor variable (psychological empowerment), and a series of attitudinal outcomes (job satisfaction, career satisfaction, and turnover intentions) among military employees. Six profiles of employees characterized by different levels of global and specific (emotional, physical, and mental) work fatigue were identified using latent profile analyses: Low Fatigue, Physically and Emotionally Depleted, Emotionally Depleted, Globally and Mentally Depleted, Globally and Emotionally Depleted, and Balanced. In both samples, employees corresponding to the Balanced profile displayed average levels of global and specific work fatigue. However, this profile slightly differed across sample, as indicated by the observation of work fatigue levels that were slightly higher among the military than among civilians. Militaries’ perceptions of psychological empowerment were significantly related to their likelihood of belonging to all profiles. In turn, militaries’ career satisfaction, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions were also found to differ as a function of profile membership.

Life in the army reserves – the balance of work, training and physical activity: an ethnographic study

ABSTRACT Physiological, psychological and social risk factors influence the health and wellbeing of military personnel and units. Whilst evidence has investigated employment within the regular military, the same cannot be said for reserve personnel. Reservists negotiate civilian employment whilst balancing the rigours of military life. Little is known about the lives and experiences of these individuals despite their reliance within the military. The current study sought to understand the health, lives and experiences of reservists through an ethnography consisting of observations, lived experience, conversations and semi-structured interviews. Forty personnel participated in the study which took place in one combat unit of the British Army. Data were collected across training exercises and weekly meetings. In total 300 hours of data were analysed using an iterative process. ‘Life as a reservist’, ‘the risk factors and implications for health and wellbeing’ and ‘the critical promotion of physical activity and health within the Army’ were identified within the data. While the training the Army Reserves undertake is supportive of health and wellbeing, the structure within the Army reduces choice and control. Enriching training and social support can mitigate these antecedents of ill-being. Further effective training can provide a setting to foster resilience and prepare personnel for deployment. The study highlights the differences and similarities between full-time personnel and the experiences of reservists, both in terms of health, wellbeing and the training undertaken. Future research may seek to understand the differences in theatres of operation, and attitudes of those responsible for promoting health and wellbeing.

Prevalence of Current and Past SARS-CoV-2 Infections among Police Employees in Poland, June-July 2020.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We aimed to determine the prevalence of current and past SARS-CoV-2 infections among police employees. Methods: This cross-sectional survey was undertaken among 5082 police employees from Mazowieckie Province, Poland. RT-PCR testing for current SARS-CoV-2 infection and serological tests (ELISA) for the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgM+IgA and IgG antibodies were performed. Results: All RT-PCR tests were negative. The anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgM+IgA index was positive (>8) in 8.9% of participants, including 11.2% women and 7.7% men (p < 0.001). Equivocal IgM+IgA index (6–8) was found in 9.8% of participants, including 11.9% women and 8.7% men (p < 0.001). The IgG index was positive (>6) in 4.3% and equivocal (4–6) in 13.2% of participants. A higher odds of positive IgM+IgA index was found in women vs. men (OR: 1.742) and police officers vs. civilian employees (OR: 1.411). Participants aged ≥60 years had a higher odds of positive IgG index vs. those aged 20–29 years (OR: 3.309). Daily vaping also increased the odds of positive IgG index (OR: 2.058). Conclusions: The majority of Polish police employees are seronegative for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Vaping and older age (≥60 years) were associated with a higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The role of Force Health Protection in the Canadian Armed Forces' response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Within the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), public health is managed by the Directorate of Force Health Protection (DFHP), a branch of the Canadian Forces Health Services Group. Since the emergence of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-19), DFHP has become heavily involved in health surveillance, outbreak monitoring, policy development, providing evidence-based guidance and advice, liaising with other national, provincial and territorial, municipal and international public health agencies, and ensuring environmental safety of CAF members. Some specific activities include supporting operations and deployments, amending policies and training and promoting hand hygiene, physical distancing and personal protective equipment use. In addition to taking measures to protect its members, CAF-Department of National Defence has contributed to Canada's national response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The DFHP will be developing training for allied health professionals to assist with contact tracing and follow-up, and will ensure adequate resources are in place to manage surge capacity for COVID-19. With these ongoing efforts, initiatives and lessons learned, DFHP is well placed to carry on with its mandate to protect and promote the health and well-being of CAF members and National Defence civilian employees, assisting Canadians and ensuring that CAF members are ready to serve their missions at home and abroad.

What University of Alaska Anchorage learned from a M7.1 earthquake

Teaching university students and employees how to react during a damaging earthquake can save lives and prevent injuries. Most earthquakes are over in less than a minute, but the real work of emergency managers begins once everyone climbs out from under their safe place and checks for damage to bodies, buildings and infrastructure. Business recovery and academic continuity can take years. Supplementing uniformed responders with trained employee volunteers can make a huge difference toward recovering quickly. Universities are generally not charged with the role of providing public safety in the same way that government is, so they must train and exercise regularly to get faculty, staff, administrators and even some students to transition quickly during crisis to new responsibilities within an incident command system (ICS) command post or emergency operations centre. During an area-wide emergency like an earthquake, a university campus must be able to run a significant part of its response and recovery efforts on its own, as governments and other institutions around them around will be doing the same — and competing for similar resources. This paper will discuss the advantages and outcomes of providing emergency response training to civilian employees and students, empowering them to become first responders, recovery workers and incident managers to supplement the few professionals paid to fulfil those roles on a full-time basis.

Putting Humans at the Centre of the Governance of the Integration and Deployment of Artificial Intelligence in Peace Support Operations

The United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have put in place systems governing the integration and deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their Peace Support Operations (PSOs). Policy proposals and discourses have emphasized putting humans at the centre of those processes, often without effectively linking important ethical and normative considerations to the technical aspects of AI and the practical aspects of peacekeeping operations. This article mainly explains that the disconnection can be mapped out as follows: the lack of mechanisms to manage knowledge and mastery, less consideration of processes pertaining to trust, and very little concern about explainability: these are all significant elements that could improve accountability in those two organizations. In addition, while taking into account the promises and perils of AI in those operations at the strategic, tactical, and operational levels, the main arguments of this paper is that the governance systems in place aiming at integrating and deploying AI do not fully take humans into consideration. The arguments in this article follow the principles behind prioritizing the needs and concerns of civilians, whom these operations aim to protect, as well as the civilian, military, and police employees of the organizations that carry out the operations.

Aligning workplace wellness with global change: an integrated model

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to present evidence for a new model of change management designed to create a continuous integrated alignment between ongoing external organizational change and the proven internal environmental factors related to employee emotional wellness and workplace engagement that in turn directly impact organizational performance relationships within society and the human condition.Design/methodology/approachThis research uses a quantitative approach based on both primary and secondary data. The secondary data includes an analysis of the 2018 Public Service Employee Survey of Canada (N = 163,121) conducted by the Government of Canada while the primary data involves a 2018 employee survey conducted by the author of both civilian and sworn police officer employees with the British Columbia division of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (N = 2,129) as well as a 2019 survey by the author of Corrections Officers at the Kent Maximum Security Institution in Agassiz, British Columbia (N = 174).FindingsThe key findings presented in this paper provide new evidence that correlations between key organizational workplace factors and employee wellness and performance are directly linked to the ability to address rapidly evolving external environmental factors; that traditional change management approaches are often insufficient to create a positive nexus between the results of environmental scanning and internal workplace environments; and that a new holistic model described in this paper can serve as a powerful diagnostic tool for change managers to identify how internal organizational structures, systems and climates can harmonize with external climates including societal expectations, economic and technological change and public policy.Research limitations/implicationsThe research findings pertain to about 100,000 employees of the Canadian public service and their readiness to manage well-established external environmental factors based on their rating of key internal environmental factors rated to workplace wellness and employee emotional health. Further research on the topic of external/internal organizational change adaptability is required specific to private sector organizations.Practical implicationsThe practical implications of the change management matrix diagnostic model have been proven in earlier beta testing with a group of organizational executives. The presentation of the data in the matrix format resulted in quick and clear identification of major areas of required change. Those changes resulted in improved service delivery, public safety and public trust. A second test was conducted by MBA students successfully applying the matrix model to identify key areas requiring change in various case studies.Social implicationsSociety at present has many new expectations of organizational behavior and citizenship as rapid changes in external environments occur including changes to technology, corporate governance, communications, economic conditions, social values, demographics and public policy. A failure by organizations to ensure that their internal environments of corporate culture, structure, systems and the workplace climate are in sync with external change presents major threats to employee and social well-being and organizational success.Originality/valueA unique model of organizational change management is presented that allows for successfully adapting internal organizational environments to the challenges of meeting rapidly advancing integrated external environmental forces. The result becomes an integrated ecosystem of external and internal environmental forces that offer adaptability to complex and evolving challenges ranging from social, economic, technological and climate change.