Measuring Underemployment Among Military Spouses

Abstract

PrefaceThe military lifestyle can be very demanding, not just for military members themselves but also for their families. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), to promote member retention and as part of its selfimposed duty to care for military families to the utmost extent, seeks to monitor and improve employment opportunities for military spouses.As a continuation of its previous work on employment opportunities for military spouses, the RAND Corporation was asked to examine available data and to report on the extent and causes of underemployment. This document presents our research and findings on underemployment among military spouses.

‘It’s nice to just be you’: The influence of the employment experiences of UK military spouses during accompanied postings on well-being

“…Accompanied postings are associated with poorer employment outcomes among US military spouses, with spouses less likely to work fulltime and working fewer weeks during the year compared with their civilian counterparts and male military spouses (Cooke and Speirs, 2005; Hosek et al, 2002). Underemployment due to disparities between the educational requirements of the job market and the qualifications held by military spouses can also be an issue, especially in isolated or rural areas with fewer job opportunities (Lim and Schulker, 2010).…”

The Effects of Job Relocation on Spousal Careers: Evidence From Military Change of Station Moves

“…Using the Status of Forces Survey and the Current Population Survey, Lim, Golinelli, and Cho (2007) find military spouses earn less, on average, and are less likely to be employed than civilian spouses, even after controlling for age and other demographics, educational attainment, family size, and geographic location. Lim and Schulker (2010) similarly find that military spouses are more likely to be under-employed. 7.…”

“…Using the Status of Forces Survey and the Current Population Survey, Lim, Golinelli, and Cho () find military spouses earn less, on average, and are less likely to be employed than civilian spouses, even after controlling for age and other demographics, educational attainment, family size, and geographic location. Lim and Schulker () similarly find that military spouses are more likely to be under‐employed. Other work finds that employed military spouses earn approximately 25% less than their civilian counterparts (Clever and Segal ), despite the fact that 84% of military spouses have some college and 35% have a bachelor's or more advanced degree.…”

Exploring the Role of Depressive Symptoms, Service Members, and Spousal Demographic Characteristics on Military Spousal Employment

“…This study builds on previous investigations that relied on a framework that servicemember wives' engagement in the labor market was based on a decision balance between income and leisure, and where allocation of time was based on the costs associated with working outside the home (e.g., it is more expensive to work than stay-at-home; Becker, 1965;Grossman, 1981;Lim & Schulker, 2010;Mincer, 1962;Schwartz et al, 1990Schwartz et al, , 1991. While more recent studies have examined military spousal labor force participation as a function of individual and service-member demographic characteristics (e.g., income), less is known about the role the woman's education, race and ethnicity, and mental health have on employment in this unique population (Goldin, 2006).…”