Satisfaction of Former Employees of the Swiss Armed Forces with Their New Work Situation

Two years after the latest reform of 2004 in the Swiss Armed Forces (SAF) a higher number of resignations by the professional members was registered. A qualitative and a quantitative study were conducted to analyze the current turnover situation. The present contribution focuses on the quantitative data of 77 former employees and describes the present work situation of them. The majority of former employees of the armed forces works in the federal or cantonal administration, one third is employed in the private sector. Most of them are successful in their jobs, have managerial positions with more than two subordinates and they did not need further education for their present jobs. The former employees are significantly more satisfied in their new positions, have lower levels of resignation, have more autonomy, are more satisfied with their compensation and perceive more job alternatives available to them than the currently employed military professionals of the SAF. Their attitude towards work is more oriented towards work-life-balance as most of them believe that every employee should have an opportunity to work part-time. In all, the data suggests that a military education is attractive on the civil labor market, but that it could be difficult for the SAF to win back former employees.