|
The latest poll finds a great many Air Force
members thinking about leaving service.
|
 |
By Bruce D. Callendar
|
General Well Being
|
|
%
Officer |
%
Enlisted |
% Civilian |
|
Jr. |
Field |
Pilot |
1st Term |
2nd Term |
Jr. |
Sr. |
|
USAF is a good place
to work |
81 |
83 |
71 |
69 |
68 |
83 |
81 |
|
USAF provides good quality
of life |
76 |
77 |
67 |
66 |
60 |
76 |
75 |
|
Family supportive of
career |
71 |
78 |
59 |
63 |
60 |
82 |
83 |
|
How well USAF informs |
47 |
54 |
40 |
45 |
41 |
51 |
49 |
Many Air Force members are working
harder, spending more time away from home, and thinking more
seriously than ever about quitting. Those are among the more
disturbing conclusions to be found in USAF's latest Chief of
Staff Survey, results of which were published late this spring.
The poll, perhaps the most ambitious the service has performed,
was conducted last fall. It not only probed standard quality-of-life
matters but also asked members to comment on the organizational
climate of their units. This second section of the survey asked
respondents to rate their organizations on leadership, resources,
teamwork, and overall performance.
As with other recent surveys, this one was directed at the
entire active force. Officers, enlisted members, and civilian
employees were invited to answer computer-based questionnaires.
More than 200,000 persons (almost 40 percent of the population)
responded.
On the bright side, most members agreed that the Air Force
is a good place to work and provides a good quality of life.
Most also said that their families are supportive of their careers.
However, the responses of enlisted members and pilots on these
points were generally less positive than those of nonrated officers
and civilians.
Fewer than half the respondents agreed that the Air Force
keeps them well enough informed. Pilots and second term airmen
showed the most negative perceptions of the information flow.
The most discouraging findings, however, came in responses
to questions about members' career intentions. Only 64 percent
of officers and 58 percent of airmen say they intend to stay
until retirement. Compared with the results in the previous two
surveys, this represented a drop of 10 percentage points for
officers and six for enlisted.
Career Intent--Three-Year Trend
|
|
Intent |
Officer |
Enlisted |
Civilian |
| |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
| Stay |
74 |
72 |
64 |
64 |
62 |
58 |
81 |
84 |
77 |
| Undecided |
12 |
13 |
13 |
16 |
17 |
15 |
11 |
10 |
14 |
| Go |
14 |
15 |
23 |
20 |
21 |
27 |
8 |
6 |
9 |
About 77 percent of civilian members said they planned to
stay, but this figure also is down from previous years. And,
while three out of four civilians plan to stay, fewer than half
(47 percent) said they felt secure about their continued employment
with the force.
There has been a corresponding increase in the percentages
in all grades who say they plan to quit before they are eligible
for retirement, up from 14 to 23 percent for officers, from 20
to 27 percent for airmen, and from 8 to 9 percent for civilians.
Disquieting Results
Findings among specific groups of members were even more disquieting.
The latest poll found, for example, that almost half (47 percent)
of second-term airmen plan to leave short of retirement.
Among pilots, there was a marked difference in the career
intent of different years-of-service groups. The most junior
and most senior pilots generally said they intended to stay,
but more than half of those with six to 12 years of service said
that they planned to leave. This group includes the active, experienced
young fliers whom the service is most concerned about retaining.
The most positive career intentions were shown by officers
of all grades in US Air Forces in Europe and by company graders
in Air Force Space Command. However, the career intent of company
graders in Air Force Materiel Command was even lower than the
Air Force average.
Three-Year
Comparison
of Work Levels |
|
Yearly TDY
Days and
Work Hours/Week by Groups |
|
Average
TDY days per year |
|
Group |
TDY |
Hours |
|
Year |
Officer |
Enlisted |
Civilian |
XXX |
Pilot |
83 |
55 |
| 1995 |
50 |
46 |
26 |
|
Navigator |
75 |
54 |
| 1996 |
53 |
54 |
22 |
|
Nonrated Line Officer |
51 |
54 |
| 1997 |
56 |
60 |
24 |
|
Non-line Officer |
31 |
55 |
|
Average
hours per week |
|
Rated Enlisted Crew |
66 |
50 |
| 1996 |
51 |
46 |
N/A |
|
Non-aircrew Enlisted |
57 |
49 |
| 1997 |
55 |
49 |
44 |
|
|
|
|
The much-examined areas of operational and personnel tempo
were given another look by the survey, and, not surprisingly, USAF found there have been steady increases in both problems
over the past three years. Officers reported averaging 50 days
TDY in 1995, 53 days in 1996, and 56 days in 1997. Enlisted members
said they had seen similar increases (from 46 days to 54 to 60).
There was no similar trend for civilians.
Average work hours per week also have been on the increase.
Officers who said they worked 51 hours in 1996 reported spending
55 hours on the job a year later. The enlisted work week rose
from 46 hours to 49 over the same period. Earlier figures were
not available for civilians, but those responding in 1997 said
they worked 44 hours per week.
As expected, the Air Force found officers in Air Force Special
Operations Command, Air Combat Command, and Air Mobility Command
pulling more TDY than those in areas such as Air Force Space
Command and Air Education and Training Command.
However, most members reported working longer hours regardless
of unit assignments.
More marked differences were reported by members in specific
specialties. Among officers, pilots apparently spend the most
time TDY (83 days per year) and put in 55 working hours per week.
Navigators came in a close second with 75 days TDY and 54-hour
weeks. Nonrated line officers reported spending only 51 days
TDY but said they worked 54-hour weeks. Non-line officers said
they averaged only 31 days TDY but also put in 55-hour weeks.
| Problems Due to Unusual
Job Demands |
|
Nature
of Problem |
%
Officers |
%
Pilots |
%
Enlisted |
| Maintaining Health/Fitness |
53 |
50 |
36 |
| Maintaining Relationships |
46 |
52 |
38 |
| Doing car/household repairs |
45 |
52 |
33 |
| Ability to take leave |
41 |
44 |
31 |
| Communicating with family |
39 |
43 |
34 |
95 Percent
Among enlisted members, air crews said they served the most
TDY (66 days vs. 57 for others), but all reported working from
49 to 50 hours per week. Asked if their work weeks had increased
in the past year, more than 95 percent of the military members
and more than half of the civilians said they had.
Asked why their work hours increased, the respondents' answers
varied, but all said that additional duties were the main cause
and undermanned work centers a close second. Training requirements,
heavier workloads, inspections, and exercises were listed as
other factors.
With respondents allowed to list more than one reason for
their increased working hours, 64 percent of the pilots cited
additional duties, 46 percent blamed work center undermanning,
and 35 percent said the cause was training requirements. About
28 percent mentioned increased workload, 36 percent named preparing
for inspections, and 34 percent picked exercises.
Members in AFSOC, ACC, and AMC in particular said their work
hours were up because of more increased preparation for and participation
in exercises, more TDY, and work center undermanning. AMC officers
reported additional duties as a major reason.
Asked if the demands of their jobs had posed any special personal
problems in the past year, about half said they had not. Among
pilots, however, about two-thirds said they had had difficulties.
Again, respondents were allowed to list more than one problem
area. About half the pilots reported having experienced trouble
maintaining relationships, maintaining health and fitness, and
getting car and household repairs done.
Communicating with families and the inability to take leave
were cited less often. The responses of other officers were similar,
but enlisted members generally reported fewer problems. The highest
percentage of enlisted troops cited difficulties maintaining
relationships, and smaller percentages listed other problems.
| Impact of Optempo |
|
Area
of Impact |
% Officer |
% Pilot |
% Enlisted |
| Required PME |
38 |
53 |
28 |
| Required Training |
41 |
57 |
34 |
| Personal Problems |
36 |
52 |
33 |
Pilots also gave the most weight to questions about the impact
of optempo on their ability to train, personal issues, and their
opportunity to take required professional education and training.
Again, smaller percentages of other officers cited such problems
and even smaller percentages of enlisted members did so.
In a related analysis, the Air Force tried to measure the
tempo effects on younger members (less than 12 years of service)
in several specialties. It looked at the average number of days
TDY for the skill and at the percentage of members in the skill
who planned to separate.
|
Officers Planning
to Quit vs. TDY Days |
|
Enlisted Members
Planning to Quit vs TDY Days |
| |
% Quitting |
Avg. TDY |
|
|
% Quittingg |
Avg. TDY |
| Pilots |
55 |
121 |
|
OSI |
40 |
86 |
| Surgery |
55 |
47 |
|
C2 Systems Ops |
33 |
112 |
| Physician |
39 |
56 |
|
Biomedical Technicians |
33 |
70 |
| Manpower |
38 |
49 |
|
Communications-Electronics |
28 |
126 |
| OSI |
30 |
81 |
|
Communications-Computers |
28 |
112 |
| Information
Management |
25 |
53 |
|
Weather |
27 |
91 |
| Dental |
25 |
47 |
|
Security Forces |
25 |
125 |
| Operations
Support |
24 |
72 |
|
Aircrew Operations |
25 |
117 |
| Aerospace
Medicine |
24 |
71 |
|
Intelligence |
24 |
107 |
| Navigators |
21 |
104 |
|
Aircrew Protection |
22 |
93 |
|
Mission Support |
21 |
93 |
| Aerospace
Maintenance |
20 |
137 |
Pilots and Navigators
Pilots reported the highest TDY rate (121 days), and 55 percent
said they planned to quit. Although navigators said they averaged
almost as much TDY (104 days), only 21 percent said they planned
to separate.
In the medical field, medical doctors in surgical fields averaged
only 47 days TDY, but 55 percent said they would separate. Other
physicians apparently pulled more TDY, but smaller percentages
said they planned to leave before retirement.
A similar comparison was made among enlisted members with
less than 12 years of service. Those in the Office of Special
Investigations said they averaged 86 days TDY, and 40 percent
said they planned to separate. By contrast, those in aerospace
maintenance averaged 137 days, but only 20 percent said they
planned to quit. The Air Force concluded that the findings followed
no consistent pattern, suggesting that factors other than TDY
might be affecting career intent in these specialties.
Another section of the poll tried to measure how much use
members made of various base-level services, programs, and facilities
and how much influence each had on their career decisions. The
largest percentages listed grocery shopping, retail shopping,
medical and dental health care, and fitness and sports activities
as most used.
Considerably smaller percentages said they used on-base child
development centers and family day care and educational programs.
The responses of officers and enlisted members followed roughly
similar patterns.
When asked what programs most influenced their career decisions,
however, officers and enlisted troops were quite different. Overall,
higher percentages of officers picked medical health care and
commissaries. Among enlisted troops, career airmen listed health
care highest, but younger airmen listed tuition assistance first.
Non-career airmen in AFSOC, AFMC, AMC, and Pacific Air Forces
gave higher ratings to exchanges, field grade officers in PACAF
cited housing as important to their career decisions, and pilots
with USAFE voted particularly heavily for health care.
When the survey asked what base programs, services, or facilities
the town could supply, about one-third of all members said none.
Of those who said local communities could provide some facilities,
most listed libraries as a possibility. About 63 percent of officers
and 47 percent of enlisted troops picked this choice. About 42
percent of officers said towns could provide retail shopping,
but only 37 percent of enlisted troops agreed.
When the Air Force asked members how they felt about compensation,
a higher percentage of officers and civilians said total pay
was fair and equitable, while most enlisted troops did not. The
trend was similar for all pay items, although both officers and
enlisted troops agreed moving allowances were good. Interestingly,
although they generally make more money than other officers of
the same grades, pilots gave lower ratings to all pay items.
|
Percentage Agreeing
Pays Are Fair and Equitable |
|
Pay
Category |
%
Officer |
%
Enlisted |
%
Civilian |
|
Jr. |
Field |
Pilot |
1st Term |
2d Term |
Life |
Jr. |
Sr. |
| Total Pay |
59 |
60 |
50 |
28 |
23 |
30 |
56 |
68 |
| Basic Pay |
48 |
48 |
40 |
23 |
17 |
22 |
54 |
58 |
| TDY Allowance |
55 |
57 |
39 |
38 |
39 |
38 |
60 |
70 |
| Moving Allowance |
65 |
49 |
49 |
46 |
50 |
46 |
47 |
56 |
| Housing Allowance |
47 |
40 |
32 |
33 |
29 |
28 |
N/A |
N/A |
More? Or Less?
In a separate question, the Air Force asked members if they
thought their service pay and benefits were as good or better
than they could earn in the same work in the private sector.
Only about 22 percent of officers and 16 percent of enlisted
members agreed their service pay was better. Only 6 percent of
pilots thought they could make more in the Air Force, but almost
half of the civilians said they could.
In yet another pay question, almost half the enlisted troops
said they could not afford or could barely afford things they
need. Only 13 percent of officers gave the same response, and
civilian responses fell somewhere between the two.
|
Importance of Retirement
in Decision to Stay |
|
Rating |
%
Officer |
%
Enlisted |
| |
Jr. |
Field |
1st Term |
2d Term |
Life |
| Very Important |
40 |
45 |
24 |
27 |
31 |
| Most Important |
17 |
34 |
16 |
22 |
45 |
When the Air Force asked how important retirement was to their
career decisions, higher percentages of senior officers and career
airmen said it was very important or most important.
Predictably, the importance of retirement was highest among
officers who said they planned to remain in service long enough
to retire.
The findings were similar among enlisted members although
the percentage of junior enlisted troops who cited retirement
as a major factor was smaller than that for career members. In
a similar question, even higher percentages of civilian employees
said retirement was important to their decision to stay.
Turning to a series of questions on housing, the Air Force
asked members how satisfied they were about theirs. Most said
they were satisfied. The percentages were higher among officers
and among all grades for those living off base.
When the Air Force pinned them down as to what they disliked
about their quarters, most officers said they had too little
room. The second biggest complaint by those living on base was
the poor overall quality of their housing.
| Percent Satisfied With Current
Housing |
|
Satisfaction With Tricare |
| |
Officer |
Enlisted |
XXXXX |
Level
of Enrollment |
| Married |
78 |
63 |
|
Members |
Prime |
Extra |
Standard |
| Single |
79 |
49 |
|
% Officer |
42 |
30 |
27 |
| On Base |
65 |
47 |
|
% Enlisted |
38 |
28 |
29 |
| Off Base |
84 |
69 |
|
|
Lack of room also was a common complaint among airmen, but
high percentages of those living off base said the cost of their
housing was the biggest problem. And, like officers, many of
those living on base cited poor quality of the quarters. High
noise levels were more often a complaint among members living
on base than among those living in town.
Asked what factors governed their preferences for living on
or off base, officers living on base said the cost, the short
commute to work, and, for married officers, neighborhood safety
were important. Among those living off base, the quality of housing,
privacy, and the desire to get away from work were most often
listed.
The responses of enlisted members were similar to those of
officers although the percentages varied somewhat. Privacy, for
example, was listed as important by higher percentages of airmen
than officers among those living off base, as well as by single
airmen living on base. Getting away from work was also a high
priority for airmen living off base.
| Percent Satisfied With Health
Care Programs |
| |
Officer |
Enlisted |
|
Type of Care |
Married |
Single |
Married |
Single |
|
Medical |
53 |
58 |
44 |
45 |
|
Dental |
52 |
67 |
44 |
53 |
|
Tricare |
40 |
40 |
37 |
36 |
Questioned about their satisfaction with health care, higher
percentages of officers than airmen said they were satisfied
with both medical and dental care. However, only 40 percent or
less in all grades said they were satisfied with Tricare.
Overall, Prime enrollees in all grades showed more satisfaction
with Tricare. Officers in the Tricare Extra program were a little
happier than airmen, and airmen under the Standard option were
slightly more satisfied than officers.
In a question on Professional Military Education, members
were asked how they would prefer to take the training. Most officers
and higher percentages of enlisted said they preferred in-residence
study. Correspondence was preferred by more airmen than officers.
In related queries, half of all officers and 54 percent of
airmen said they were satisfied with education opportunities
at their bases. Junior officers and airmen were somewhat less
satisfied, and dissatisfaction was highest among officers assigned
overseas.
In separate questions to civilians, only one in four said
the civilian awards program was effective, and more than half
said they were not satisfied with promotion opportunities. However,
some 55 percent said they were willing to relocate to advance
their careers.
Measuring Unit Factors
In the second portion of the survey, the Air Force tried to
measure members' perceptions of their units using 14 indicators
such as job satisfaction, available resources, supervision, and
leadership.
Respondents were asked to rate various statements about each
subject on a six-point scale (from one "strongly disagree"
to six "strongly agree"). Those who gave the statement
a four ("slightly agree") or higher were considered
to have a positive attitude about it.
In the overall ratings, members were most positive about job
factors. Eighty-nine percent of the sample group showed satisfaction
with their work, although enlisted members were slightly less
positive than officers or civilians.
Unit performance, core values, teamwork, and supervision also
received high marks, with 79 percent or more voicing positive
attitudes. The respondents gave lower ratings (66 percent positive)
to statements about their units' recognition of their worth and
to those about the resources available. The general organizational
climate received an even lower score (63 percent positive), and
the mean rating for all three was only four, the lowest level
of agreement.
About 79 percent of members gave supervision positive ratings,
and 70 percent rated unit leadership as positive. Unit flexibility
also ranked low on the approval scale.
There were some marked differences in the ratings given by
various groups taking the survey. Overall, officers tended to
show more positive reactions than did enlisted members or civilians.
The exception was on the question of unit resources. Only 58
percent of officers agreed their units had all they needed, compared
with 67 percent for enlisted members and 68 percent for civilians.
| Organizational Climate Profile |
|
Indicator |
% Positive |
Mean |
| The Job |
89 |
5 |
| Unit Performance Measures |
85 |
4.8 |
| Core Values |
80 |
4.5 |
| Teamwork |
80 |
4.5 |
| Supervision |
79 |
4.5 |
| Training and Development |
79 |
4.5 |
| Communications |
78 |
4.4 |
| Participation/Involvment |
76 |
4.4 |
| Job Satisfaction |
75 |
4.3 |
| Leadership |
70 |
4.1 |
| Unit Flexibility |
67 |
4.1 |
| Recognition |
66 |
4 |
| Unit Resources |
66 |
4 |
| General Organization Climate |
63 |
4 |
Elsewhere, 91 percent of the officers had positive reactions
to their units' teamwork, compared with only about 78 percent
of enlisted and civilian members. There was a similar split on
communications, 87 percent of officers showing positive attitudes
against about 76 percent for others.
Statements dealing with the amount of recognition units give
their members drew the lowest percentage of agreement from enlisted
members (64 percent) and civilians (61 percent). About 80 percent
of officers were positive on the point.
Leadership Questions
Reactions to each of the unit-related factors were based on
several different statements and reactions to these varied considerably.
In the area of leadership, for example, some 80 percent of respondents
agreed with the statement, "I am proud of the leadership
in my unit." However, only about 63 percent agreed that
"My unit leadership is inspirational." And there was
only slightly more agreement with the statement, "My unit
leadership makes decisions based on facts."
On the subject of unit resources, most members agreed they
had enough time and tools to do their jobs, but far fewer (about
44 percent) agreed they had enough people in their work groups.
Members' jobs were the subject of two sets of statements.
Most (80 percent or more) agreed that their jobs let them use
a variety of skills, see the finished products of their work,
and work with a minimum of supervision. However, they had somewhat
less positive reactions to statements about job satisfaction.
The coolest (71 percent agreement) was to the statement, "I
have a sense of personal fulfillment at the end of the day."
Similarly, reactions to statements about general unit climate
were mixed. About 77 percent of those polled said they felt they
were valued members of their units, and most (70 percent) said
people in their units were charitable with their time, talents,
and money. But fewer (62 percent) rated morale in their units
as high, and even fewer (60 percent) said they would recommend
an assignment to their unit to a friend.
The Air Force's overall conclusion from the survey was, "People
who think their jobs are important and understand how they fit
into the unit's mission are generally more satisfied with their
jobs."
Again, however, USAF conceded that officer responses generally
were more positive than those of either enlisted members or civilians.
Bruce D. Callander, a regular contributor to Air Force
Magazine, served tours of active duty during World War II and
the Korean War. In 1952, he joined Air Force Times, serving as
editor from 1972 to 1986. His most recent story for Air Force
Magazine, "Zuckert Remembers," appeared in the June
1998 issue.
Copyright Air Force Association. All rights reserved
|
