“I served” is more than a line on a CV: what stops veterans from finding and keeping a job

Author: Diana Vorontsova

Military experience can be valuable to a civilian employer, but it is not always easy for veterans to explain it in the language of job ads and CVs

After employment, other challenges arise: interaction with the team, adapting working conditions and finding opportunities for development.

Why a job offer alone is not enough was explained in the programme “Po zhyvomu” by Nataliia Bondarchuk, a consultant on employing people with war-related disabilities. Alona Skorzova, a representative of the State Employment Service, also spoke about systemic difficulties.

How to explain military experience to an employer

According to Nataliia Bondarchuk, one of the common problems is the inability to describe one’s own skills after service.

“What unites them all is that they do not know what to tell employers or what to write in a CV. They write ‘I served’ and do not understand what is hidden behind that word,” the consultant says.

A detailed conversation reveals that behind the short wording are specific tasks and skills that can be applied in civilian life. But it can be hard for the person to see that connection.

Special support is needed for those who have never looked for a job before: who were professional soldiers for a long time or began service at a young age.

In this situation a career consultant helps identify strengths, prepare a CV and formulate professional goals. According to Bondarchuk, the consultant’s task is to empower the person, not to decide for them what to work as.

Stereotypes hinder both sides

Another barrier is prejudice. The consultant says that some employers wrongly attribute aggression or post-traumatic stress disorder to all veterans. Such generalisations prevent assessing a specific candidate, their experience and needs.

At the same time, veterans may also distrust employers, in particular fearing that the company is interested only in their status as a person with a disability.

So it is necessary to work with both sides. It is important to explain to businesses how to conduct interviews, organise onboarding and prepare the team.

Bondarchuk warns against extremes: excessive heroisation of the employee or ignoring their experience and individual needs.

Silence after an interview increases uncertainty

According to the consultant, large companies more often have veteran support programmes, but decisions there can be made slowly. For candidates, a long wait without explanation becomes an additional ordeal.

Her advice to employers is to stay in touch. If there is no decision yet, it is worth telling the person so directly.

Small businesses, in Bondarchuk’s observation, are often more flexible, but support there more often depends on a specific manager rather than on an established system.

Why veterans do not return to their previous workplace

Alona Skorzova cited the results of a survey of a thousand veterans and service members. According to her, almost 40% of respondents will not return, or have already not returned, to their previous job.

Among the main reasons she named misunderstandings with management or the team, the need to adapt the workplace and a lack of new skills.

These data refer to a specific survey and do not describe the situation of all veterans. However, they show that a successful return to work depends not only on the availability of a vacancy or the size of the salary.

The first job may be only a trial

Nataliia Bondarchuk says that some veterans quit about a year after being hired. For them the first civilian job becomes a chance to try a new direction and better understand their own expectations.

In this period a conversation about prospects is important: training, a change of duties, career and financial growth.

At the same time, as Skorzova admitted, the employment service does not yet have complete data on how many employed veterans are still in their jobs after a year. This makes it harder to assess the long-term result of support.

Help is needed until adaptation is complete

In Bondarchuk’s view, support should continue after the person starts work — until they adapt to the new environment.

Professional plans can be discussed even during treatment and rehabilitation, taking into account the veteran’s readiness for such a conversation. This helps identify the need for training and future working conditions in advance.

The consultant also stresses the need to combine scattered opportunities into a clear route: from recovery and identifying skills to training, employment and further development.

Source: National media portal “Veteran” (veteran.com.ua), https://veteran.com.ua/news/view/ya-sluzhiv-tse-bilshe-nizh-ryadok-u-rezyume-shho-zavazhae-veteranam-znajti-j-utrimati-robotu