Respecting Our Veterans Through Empowerment: The Benefits of Creating an Internal Veteran's Committee
Samuel Rapoza, CCS, CCHP, NCCS
Many agendas view military service members as valuable additions to their workforce. A veteran's experience and training often provides a very diverse group of candidates with specialties ranging from frontline combat experience to support roles such as food service, human resources, and logistics. For the purposes of correctional agencies, some may even have military police or correctional experience.
Additionally, many soldiers receive formal job training and education to further support their military career path. Yet, to an employer, these are often ancillary benefits as the values, morals, work ethic, and integrity instilled in each soldier are what distinguishes them as a high value candidate.
The tenets ingrained in soldiers through their military service are well suited for a correctional agency and many who pursue a career in such a department often stand out due to their balance of leadership and teamwork. But these benefits are not merely one sided. Many soldiers' view their mission of service as a lifelong commitment and a career in a correctional agency can afford them the opportunity to transition from serving their country to serving their community.
Employers should find ways to acknowledge the value of veterans employed within their agency. This should go beyond the often given "thank you for your service" and represent an appreciation for their continued service to their community and the agency. At the Bristol County Sheriff's Office in Massachusetts, recognizing the service veterans provide was often done during, what would appear to be, appropriate times, such as Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Armed Forces Day. However, the feedback we received from those staff who were open enough to voice their feelings on the matter, revealed that these gestures were not received the way they were intended, despite the good faith behind them.
Through honest conversations with several staff who served in the military, the Sheriff's Office learned how some felt they were being pandered to because their prior service was only considered during the previously mentioned holidays. Though they understood the good intentions motivating such gestures, the veterans employed at our agency felt these efforts, especially on the part of other staff who did not serve in the military, were perceived as unintentionally disingenuous. Additionally, several specifically cited how there was a disconnect between what the veterans actually wanted to see, versus what the agency was doing.
As an agency, ensuring our staff felt valued, appreciated, and recognized contributes to the overall crafting of our desired work culture and employer brand. Consequently, receiving such feedback from a group of employees we aimed to recognize was disappointing, but necessary in order to affect change. We re-evaluated our efforts, initially seeking to incorporate our veteran staff into the conversation and decided to go even further. Ultimately, we wanted to ensure that we, as an agency, were demonstrating the respect we truly have for our military veteran employees. In order to do this, we listened to our staff and concluded that respect was best shown not just through gratitude and recognition, but through empowerment.
Forming the Veteran's Committee
This led to the formation of a Veteran's Committee at our agency with membership solely comprising of staff who served in the military. This committee was initially intended to be a voice for veterans who worked for our agency, advocating on their behalf. But it also represented our year-long commitment to our veterans, not just on specific holidays.
Having a committee comprised of veterans not only provided them with a voice and formal recognition, but also created a system where issues pertaining to them could be discussed with their peers and addressed constructively. This system has the managerial benefit of identifying issues or ideas representative of the majority of our veterans and not merely those of an individual.
Having our agency formally endorse this committee empowered our veterans and incorporated both them, and by proxy, our administration into the solution. It also provided an outlet for our veterans to bring their concerns to a group that was representative of them. Our veterans had previously voiced apprehension in bringing concerns relative to their military experience to another employee who, as well-intentioned as they might be, lacked the perspective and ability to understand them.
Roles of the Veteran's Committee
Once our Veteran's Committee was established, additional roles and functions serviceable by its membership became apparent. Some members of the committee had become quite knowledgeable about the VA benefits available to those who served. They were then able to apply this knowledge, guiding and educating several of their coworkers on what was available to them and how to access these services. With the shared connections of the committee's membership, they also began to network with local veterans' groups, further expanding the services the committee could share with our employees, and also helped connect with veterans in the community regarding career opportunities within our agency. The existence of this committee intrigued many veterans, exemplifying the value and respect we, as an agency, have towards those who honorably served our country while doing so in a way that shows respect and empowers our veterans.
The Veterans Committee also began to help coordinate all drill scheduling, activations, and deployments for those employees who still served in the military or National Guard. This helped eliminate the need for the employees to forward their orders to multiple divisions such as payroll, human resources, administration, and their supervisors. These employees now only need to send their orders to the committee who are then tasked with relaying the orders to the appropriate divisions to seek clarification without having to contact the soldier while they are either deployed or on base.
The committee led the charge with researching different military sponsored programs to help assist soldiers looking to transition into civilian life by connecting them with career opportunities.
This ultimately led to our agency joining the P3 program with the Army Reserves with efforts for further collaboration with other programs and local stakeholders being explored as well. Having a committee in place has been beneficial for recruitment as well as it, again, demonstrates our year-long commitment to veterans as well as the respect we have for their service to our country. Employees strive to work for an agency who values and respects their employees, and the very existence of this committee demonstrates that in a very clear and deliberate way.
Often, candidates for employment are given the opportunity to speak with members of the committee for an honest view of our agency.
This can be aa great informal way for a candidate with military experience to get an "inside look" at our agency from an employee who has a similar background and experience. It also allows our current staff who are veterans to feel valued. Respect is cultivated through these interactions because it acknowledges that there are often intangible factors that those who lack military experiences may not understand, but that a fellow veteran would. It further serves to recognize soldiers as high-value employees and candidates for future employment.
Providing an outlet for our current staff to contribute towards operations in a way that is unique to their time in military service is an added benefit of having a veteran's committee. Retention and employment satisfaction can often be increased through opportunities for staff to have greater levels of autonomy and responsibility. It also creates an opportunity for retired staff to continue to contribute to the agency. Inviting these retired staff with military service to return to a voluntary role demonstrates a continued level of respect, not just for the staff, but for the service they provided to their country. Additionally, it provides a way for our staff to demonstrate their pride for their service in a way that is beneficial to our agency.
As the committee continued to evolve, other ancillary functions were found to be a good fit for the members to be tasked with. The committee now receives all formal notices to raise and lower the United States and Commonwealth flags on our campus.
Planning events and ceremonies for veteran-specific holidays has also been discussed with the hope that these events would be better received by the staff.
Conclusion
Ultimately, this committee is the result of our agency's commitment to ensuring our military veteran staff are respected and recognized in a way they feel has value. As our committee members continue to network with local leaders and community stakeholders, the premise of the committee is often appealing to many of these individuals. Respecting and honoring military veterans is generally something universally praised and supported, which it should be. Supporting the founding and continued growth of our Veteran's Committee represents a commitment to our veterans in a manner that is representative of the tenets instilled in them through their military service: integrity, honor, and loyalty.
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Samuel Rapoza, CCS, CCHP, NCCS is a Captain with the Bristol County Sheriff's Office in Massachusetts. He has over 20 years of experience working in corrections and is currently responsible for coordinating his agency's recruitment initiatives as well as being assigned to the Crisis Negotiation Team. He holds a certificate from Cornell University in Recruitment and Talent Acquisition. For more information, he can be contacted at samuelrapoza@bcso-ma.org