Married to the military but working for yourself

Claire Lyons, National Employment Advisor for the Army Families Federation, looks at some of the issues involved

All military families know how difficult it can be to juggle family and work, especially when one of you is often away at short notice and for long periods. Military life can make it very hard for spouses to have a career or even a job.

However, it is not impossible. The coping skills and change management skills that military families have are second to none, and this can stand you in very good stead in the workplace.

The Army Families Federation Employment Advice Service (AFFEAS) provides an employment and training support service, and in the last year has produced a National Employment Handbook to support people looking for work. This covers all aspects of work: setting up a business, working from home, education, training and childcare. It also promotes career planning – something we should all be thinking about.

Although military life is not easy, we can guess some of the situations that we are likely to find ourselves in, and plan for them to some extent. Our careers should not be any different – we should plan how we will be able to work in the environment we live in. For example, many military spouses choose to train in jobs they know they will be able to do in any posting, in the UK and often abroad. We are in fact lucky in this respect, as the type of jobs that fit into our lifestyle are exactly the types of jobs that currently have recruitment shortfalls and are desperate for people to go into them. Jobs like teaching, healthcare and childcare are all crying out for staff.

These are not the ‘same old’ options. They are areas offering new and exciting opportunities. Teaching, for example, could include adult education, special needs education, specialist units or administrative positions in schools and colleges. Healthcare is not only nursing in the traditional sense, but perhaps specialising in a certain field, training as an operating department practitioner or specialist nurse consultant or working in accounts, HR or other administrative areas. Childcare is a really good option for people who would like to stay at home with their own children, but could also include opening a nursery, working with children with special needs, working in an organisation or for yourself. Think about the types of work that are in every town or city – most have a number of schools, colleges and hospitals, with a variety of childcare needs.

Planning your working life is about finding something you can do wherever you are, and that gives you enjoyment and satisfaction. Many military spouses train in work that they can do from home, anything from the health and beauty sector to working for charities and running their own businesses. The National Employment Handbook covers the practical issues you need to consider if you want to work in a particular quarter, but also offers pointers about what you could do, and the boring but important information about insurance. A number of reputable companies offer work from home; party planning has moved on from just Tupperware and now includes children’s books, cosmetics and cards. You can work at your own pace, in your local community and buy a little or a lot of stock – it is up to you. Everyone should be able to find work that meets their own and their families’ needs.

None of these options is going to be easy – you have to be committed to yourself and your goal, there may be costs involved for courses or training, but there is some support available and you need to weigh up the importance to you and your family of working for the rest of your ‘military’ life. What you put in now, could mean that you are never out of work again ... unless you want to be!

Whatever work you choose to do, it is important to plan for when our working lives are over. Many people rely on their partner’s pension, but we all know that the twists and turns of life can be unexpected, and spouses should think about planning for their own financial future through a pension or savings. The National Employment Handbook touches on this briefly and the AFFEAS has produced a separate document about pensions.

In many ways the news is good. The UK has high employment levels, which means there are jobs around that need to be filled. However, we know that the reality of military life does not always work in our favour. The AFFEAS is constantly working with government and other agencies to raise awareness of issues that particularly affect military families – for example, the current problems facing spouses getting a Criminal Records Bureau check when they have been working abroad.

If you have any issues that adversely affect you because you are a military spouse, please contact the Claire Lyons on 01223 863686 or email claire_lyonswork@hotmail.com