Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Aspirations of American Youth Implications for Military Recruitment (2003) / Chapter Skim
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5. Trends in Employment and Educational Opportunities for Youth
5. Trends in Employment and Educational Opportunities for Youth
Pages 97-148
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From page 97... ...
entering the civilian labor market and (2) continuing education by entering college.
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Military service may be part of a path that also includes additional schooling and eventual entrance into the civilian labor market. Alternatively, military service could include a full career of 20 or more years of service.
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99 / ~ ~== ~ - o o o aid it ~~~ ~ o S ~ Q ~ · · · ~ O ~ it in > In in 8 ~ o o~ ct o ~ o ~ ~ ~ ~QO ~ · · ~ _ .
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One of the reasons the military Services are able to do this is that 2In particular, about 10-20 percent of recruits who enter the delayed entry program do not enter the service. In effect, they break their enlistment contract before they even begin.
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The opportunity to be stationed overseas or even in other parts of the United States in the first term of service may be seen more as an opportunity for travel than a hardship. Members in all of the military Services who are assigned to combat or combat support units which includes most initial duty assignments for recruits will be subject to deployments.
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Military Compensation System Because recruits enter voluntarily, rather than through conscription, pay and benefits must remain competitive with alternatives, if the Services are to attract and retain required numbers of qualified personnel. The military compensation system for active-duty members consists of a complex array of basic pay, nontaxable allowances, special and incentives pays, deferred compensation, and in-kind benefits.
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. These allowances vary by pay grade and, unlike the civilian sector, by dependency status.
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These tend to be occupations requiring technical skills that are highly transferable to civilian employment. Moreover, because the promotion system in the Services tends to be at least partially driven by vacant posi
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For example, the Services may offer enlistment bonuses of $5,000 to $8,000 to qualified recruits in selected occupational specialties. Special and incentive pays constitute only a small portion of the total cash compensation package.
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SOURCE: Paul F Hogan and Pat Mackin, Briefing to the Ninth Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation Working Group, November, 2000.
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Finally, many military members serving in particular occupations receive training and experience that is transferable to the civilian sector. While not a benefit in the traditional sense, this training and experience are valued highly in the civilian labor market.
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Moreover, recruiting requires that some proportion of high school graduates who are in the upper half of the distribution nationally on an intellectual qualification test choose to enter the military rather than college. Arguably, because these potential recruits could have gone to college, military pay must compensate them for what they could have earned in the civilian sector, had they gone to college.
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Figure 5-4 compares average RMC, projected to FY 2005 to average earnings in the civilian sector, at various levels of education, also projected to FY 2005 (Hogan and Mackin, 2000~. Note that the difference in earnings between college graduates and high school graduates is quite large, as is the difference between college graduates and those with some college.
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FIGURE 5-4 Average civilian earnings and average FY 2005 enlisted (regular military compensation or RMC) by years of experience.
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In addition, the Services provide targeted incentives to recruits with certain qualifications who enlist in selected occupational specialties. These include enlistment bonuses, which can be as high as $8,000 and are paid on successful completion of initial skill training, and supplements to the Montgomery GI Bill, which can be as much as $30,000.
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The marginal cost estimates of the major recruiting resources recruiters, education benefits, enlistment bonuses, and advertising are generally within a few thousands of dollars of each other. This is what one would expect if all the resources are being used reasonably efficiently.
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Army Navy Air Force Marine Corps DoD College funds (NCF) $101.62 $28.18 $29.42 $159.22 Enlistment bonuses $147.40 $105.12 $116.34 $7.44 $376.30 Loan repayment $32.89 $0.10 $6.00 $38.99 Military pay $409.60 $252.05 $96.04 $119.87 $877.57 Civilian pay $47.57 $24.55 $8.76 $7.77 $88.65 Advertising $102.04 $66.39 $47.86 $38.65 $254.94 Recruiter support $225.23 $70.31 $35.21 $43.01 $373.75 Total $1,066.35 $546.70 $310.21 $246.16 $2,169.42 SOURCE: Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (2001~.
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... 1989 1991 1993 1995 Fiscal Year 1997 1999 2001 ~:=6 Army Marine Corps -- -- -Navy —Air Force FIGURE 5-6 Recruiting resources: FY 1989-FY 2001.
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Patriotism and Higher Purpose We have discussed the financial rewards of military service, in-kind benefits, and the hardships and risks associated with military life. One aspect of military service that differs from most civilian jobs is that there is a higher purpose to military service than simply receiving pay and benefits in return for work and the acceptance of hardships.
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Summary Enlistment in the armed forces is one of three major options eligible youth have upon completion of high school. The armed forces offer a lifestyle that is very different from the one most recent high school graduates experience in college or in civilian employment.
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The armed forces should not neglect this aspect of military service in its recruiting efforts. THE EMPLOYMENT ALTERNATIVE Employment in the civilian sector is a major source of competition to the military services.
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Even when the job or type of work is held constant, opportunities in private-sector employment are highly varied. While the military Services offer similar benefits and rewards for the same job level, the civilian sector may offer different compensation and benefits for the same job depending on the organization, industry, location, etc.
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Moreover, the empirical literature on civilian employment is not scientifically sound or readily available. However, when available, we cite relevant sources of information on employment in the civilian sector (e.g., National Research Council, 1999; Office of Management and Budget, 1997; U.S.
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. Together, these data indicate that a number of high school graduates do not participate in the civilian labor force immediately after graduation or in the years thereafter.
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Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2002b)
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The implication of this observation, consistent with the literature briefly reviewed in the previous section on the value of military experience in the civilian sector, is that military service for the purpose of job training that will enhance the chance of successful employment in a civilian position may not be as valuable if the military assignment is in a field that does not have a civilian counterpart. However, also consistent with the literature, many employers recognize that military service builds many job-related skills even when the actual work performed is not related to the civilian job.
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Other industries, such as construction, retail trade, and finance, accounted for about 30 percent of all jobs. These industries did not show appreciable changes in their proportion of the labor market during this time period.
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Military and civilian jobs are categorized by the SOC system. Civilian labor market opportunities depend on the mix of available jobs and demand for specific occupational areas.
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All entrants to military service are subject to a centralized job classification procedure based on the results of the ASVAB. This is not the case in the private sector.
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However, it is important to note that the usual question private employers ask is whether a person possesses a high school diploma or the equivalent, not whether a person has a GED instead of a high school diploma. Alternatively, organizations sometimes recruit applicants only at places that are likely to provide high school graduates (e.g., job fairs associated with a vocational-technical school)
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Training opportunities are available in some organizations for some occupations; in the military, training is offered to all recruits. Working Conditions To attract highly qualified and skilled employees, employers in private industry emphasize various inducements, such as attractive work settings (e.g., location, amenities, firm size)
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Other work conditions may be less risky but have undesirable components, such as separation from family and night-shift duty. The working conditions in the military and civilian employment vary considerably; however, it is important to note that it is the value an individual places on a specific working condition that is important in determining whether it is an advantage or disadvantage in the employment decision.
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Private employers take into account labor market conditions when setting pay. Most large organizations have compensation plans and a supporting organization to review and set pay scales.
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Recall that, in general, the pay of enlisted members compares favorably with the pay of high school graduates of similar age in the civilian sector, but it compares much less favorably to college graduates in the civilian sector (see Figure 5-4~. However, like many other points of comparison, specific jobs in each sector should be compared.
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Because there is generally greater dispersion in earnings in the private sector than in the military, it is likely that the financial rewards to exceptionally talented employees in the private sector are greater than the financial rewards to exceptionally talented military members. The real issue may not be whether the actual salaries in the civilian sector are higher than those in the military or whether salaries in the private sector have a higher range.
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51.6 46.7 Medical care for your family SOURCE: Tables 3.7 and 3.8, Defense Manpower Data Center (2001~. 19 percent ranked merit pay first; 20 percent ranked overtime pay first; 18 percent ranked cost-of-living allowances first; and 12 percent mentioned individual incentives first.
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While the precise magnitude of this relationship has varied over time, from study to study, and by Service, the estimates have centered around an elasticity of about 1.0 that is, a 1 percent rise in military compensation relative to civilian employment earnings is associated with about a 1 percent increase in highly qualified recruits. Benefits Civilian employees in the private sector are offered an array of benefits and privileges.
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As Table 5-7 shows, the 1999 Survey of Active Duty Personnel suggests that the percentage of service personnel satisfied with their pay is much lower than the percentage satisfied with their benefits. There is also some evidence that satisfaction with benefits has decreased over time (Defense Manpower Data Center, 2001~.
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Moreover, those who serve a full military career of 20 or even 30 years of service typically will have a second career in the civilian sector. For this reason, a strategy by the military Services that attempts to take this into account and offers to prepare members for a return to the civilian labor market may be more successful than one that considers only the direct competition between military service and the civilian labor market at the entry point.
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. There was increasing demand for skilled workers in the civilian sector and more opportunities available to college degree holders.
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Of the students completing vocational coursework, some were completing college preparatory coursework as well (18 percent in 1994 compared with 2 percent in 1982~. Public high school graduates who completed both vocational and college preparatory courses in 1992 (89.9 percent)
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College Enrollment and Completion High school seniors have a variety of postgraduate choices, but the most popular choice among them is enrollment in college. As discussed in Chapter 3, a majority of high school graduates enroll in college immediately after graduating.
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We see the reverse pattern for two-year college stopouts. College dropouts are likely to choose other alternatives to postsecondary education (e.g., civilian employment or military service)
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To help reduce financial barriers to college enrollment, students may receive state subsidies or federal grants and loans and participate in work-study programs. Financial aid to students has doubled over the past decade, primarily due to an increase in loan aid (College Board, 2001~.
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Importantly, the returns to investing in a postsecondary education have grown significantly over time, as has the earnings premium for a college degree, relative to a high school diploma. In 1985, for example, college graduates earned about 30 percent more than high school graduates of comparable experience (see Figure 5-9~.
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. 1.20 1.18 1.16 == 1.14 1.10 1-5 6-10 1 1 -15 16-20 21 -25 26-30 31-35 Years of Experience — 1985 rim :% 1 990 1995 - - - 1998 FIGURE 5-10 Earnings of those with "some college" relative to high school graduates.
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The increasing earnings premium for college graduates compared with high school graduates is undoubtedly one of the most important factors affecting today's military recruiting market. As noted earlier, military compensation for enlisted members compares favorably with that of high school graduates in the civilian sector but falls significantly short of the compensation of college graduates.
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The military Services also collaborate with educational institutions to offer opportunities to learn at civilian high schools, vocational and technical schools, and undergraduate and graduate programs. The military Services are increasingly providing assistance for youth to pursue a postsecondary education and serve in the military.
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These benefits are available for up to 10 years after leaving the service. Highly qualified recruits in hard-to-fill occupational areas and recruits who enlist for a specified number of years are eligible to receive even more money through the Army College Fund or the Navy College Fund.
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. Compared with high school graduates, community college students have better literacy skills, are more likely to complete initial service obligations, and often possess technical skills they would otherwise have to learn at military expense.
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The armed forces compete directly for the same portion of the youth market that colleges attempt to attract high school graduates that score in the upper half of the AFQT. Both the proportion of high school graduates who continue on to college and the earnings of college graduates compared with high school graduates have increased substantially over the past decade.
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From page 148... ...
serving in the military than being employed in the civilian sector. The notion of a higher purpose, combined with extrinsic rewards, such as competitive compensation and training and educational opportunities, provides a foundation from which the armed forces can compete successfully with civilian employers and postsecondary educational institutions in attracting qualified youth.
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