Testimony

Before the Subcommittee on Benefits, Committee on

Veterans’ Affairs, House of Representatives

United States General Accounting Office

GAO

For Release on Delivery

Expected at 10:00 a.m. EST,

Thursday, July 18, 2002 MILITARY AND

VETERANS’ BENEFITS

Observations on the

Transition Assistance

Program

Statement of Cynthia A. Bascetta, Director

Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues

GAO-02-914T
Page 1 GAO-02-914T

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:

Thank you for inviting me to discuss the military’s transition assistance

program, which the Congress established in 1990 during a time of military

downsizing to help service men and women return to civilian life. Since its

inception, the program has served over one million separating and retiring

military personnel and has been administered through the coordinated

efforts of the Departments of Defense (DOD), Transportation (DOT),

Labor (DOL), and Veterans Affairs (VA). In fiscal year 2001, the military

branches and DOL spent approximately $47.5 million to provide transition

assistance to about 222,000 separating and retiring service members.

Today, I will describe the transition assistance offered by each military

branch and how their transition assistance programs and services differ. I

will also discuss what is known about how well program objectives, such

as transitioning to civilian employment, have been met. To conduct our

work, we analyzed program descriptions and administrative data from

documentation provided by DOD, DOT, DOL, and VA. We also conducted

structured group interviews during fieldwork at five locations, one at each

military branch—the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard.1

We talked to about 70 service members, including separatees and retirees

as well as members expected to separate with a disability, who had

participated in the transition assistance workshop. At each location, we

also interviewed commanding officers, supervisors, and transition

assistance program staff. While all military branches were represented, we

cannot generalize from this information. In addition, we did not interview

service members who did not receive transition assistance services.

Finally, we reviewed existing studies of the transition assistance program.

Our work was conducted from March 2002 through July 2002, in

accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.

In summary, while each branch of the military provides required preseparation counseling and offers transition assistance workshops to help

service members transition to civilian life, not all eligible service members

 1

 We conducted structured group interviews at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina; Andrews Air

Force Base, Maryland; Fort Stewart, Georgia; Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, Florida; and

U.S. Coast Guard Integrated Support Command Miami, Florida. We observed a transition

assistance program workshop at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. We also observed

disabled transition assistance program workshops at the National Naval Medical Center in

Bethesda, Maryland and at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in the District of

Columbia.
Page 2 GAO-02-914T

receive transition assistance. Because the military branches have

considerable flexibility in designing their programs to address the

perceived needs of their service members, transition assistance varies in

content and delivery across the military branches. For example, the Army

uses contract staff and interactive job assistance tools to provide the level

of employment-related assistance it believes many of its service members

need. In addition, service members experience differences in access to

transition assistance depending on their unique circumstances. For

example, service members who receive transition assistance while

stationed at remote locations often receive less extensive transition

assistance than what is available at other locations. Service members we

talked to liked the services they received, and several studies confirm

participant satisfaction with transition assistance. However, isolating the

impact of transition assistance on employment, education, and other

outcomes is difficult because of data inadequacies and methodological

challenges. Only two program evaluations from the early 1990s evaluated

the effectiveness of transition assistance on employment and provided

limited information. Moreover, they did not evaluate the impact of

transition assistance on other potential goals, including recruitment and

retention, which could have growing importance now that the military is

no longer downsizing.

When the Congress established the transition assistance program in 1990,2

significant reductions in military force levels were expected. The law

noted that many of these service personnel specialized in critical skills,

such as combat arms, which would not transfer to the civilian workforce.

Transition assistance, including employment and job training services, was

established to help such service members make suitable educational and

career choices as they readjusted to civilian life.

The law directed DOL, DOD, and VA to jointly administer the program. To

do so, the agencies entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU),

which spelled out each agency’s role in the provision of services to

members of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. When the Coast

Guard started to operate the transition assistance program in 1994, DOT

entered into a similar agreement with VA and DOL.

 2

 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991, P.L. 101-510, November 5, 1990.

Background
Page 3 GAO-02-914T

Each branch of the military is required to provide pre-separation

counseling to all military personnel no later than 90 days prior to their

separation from the military. Pre-separation counseling, according to the

law, shall include information about education and vocational

rehabilitation benefits, selective reserve options, job counseling and job

search and placement information, relocation assistance services, medical

and dental benefits, counseling on the effects of career change, and

financial planning. The military branches are to provide space for the

provision of transition services at locations with more than 500 active duty

personnel. Separating service members must complete a pre-separation

counseling checklist indicating that they have been informed of the

services available to them and, on this checklist, they are to indicate the

services they wish to receive, including if they wish to participate in the

transition assistance workshop.

For locations in the United States, DOL is responsible for providing

transition assistance workshops, which are generally 3-day training

sessions focusing primarily on resume writing and job search strategies

and includes a manual with basic information on the material covered in

the workshop.3

 The MOU identifies specific workshop objectives,

including preventing and reducing long-term unemployment, reducing

unemployment compensation paid to veterans, and improving retention.

DOL spent about $5 million in fiscal year 2001 to provide about 3,200

workshops, in addition to the funding spent on transition assistance by the

military branches shown in table 1. The workshop and other transition

services are to be accessible to service members two years prior to

retirement and one year prior to separation.4

 As part of the transition

assistance workshop, VA is responsible for providing information on

veterans’ benefits, including information on disability benefits. VA is also

responsible for providing more detailed information and assistance to

those service members separating or retiring due to a disability.

 3

 When available these seminars are facilitated by Local Veterans Employment

Representatives (LVER) or Disabled Veterans Outreach Program (DVOP) specialists,

federally funded staff, who are part of states’ employment service systems and provide

direct employment services to eligible veterans. If they are unavailable, federal DOL staff

or a DOL contractor facilitates the transition assistance workshop. At overseas locations,

the workshops are facilitated by DOD.

4

 Veterans Education and Benefits Expansion Act of 2001, P.L. 107-103, Dec. 27, 2001,

extended from 6 months to 1 year for separatees and from 1 year to 2 years for retirees, the

time prior to separation that service members may access transition assistance.
Page 4 GAO-02-914T

Table 1: Transition Assistance Funding by Military Branch, Fiscal Year 2001

Army Air Force Marine Navy Coast Guard Total

Funding (in millions)a

DOD 13.5 8.9 4.0 10.3 0.0 36.7

Other 5.3b0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5c 5.8

Total 18.8 8.9 4.0 10.3 0.5 42.5

Transition Assistance Workshopsd

Number held 1,207 1,115 520 1,075 33 3,950

Length (in days) 2-3 3 3-4 4 4 N/A

Average class size 24 25 41 38 35 N/A

a

 These amounts do not include DOL or VA funding, DOD overhead expenditures or any resources

contributed by local installations.

b

 The Army provides funds to supplement transition assistance.

c

 This amount includes funds from both Coast Guard Headquarters and local Coast Guard

installations.

d

 These numbers include both DOL facilitated and contractor facilitated workshops in the U.S. and

DOD facilitated workshops overseas.

Source: DOD and DOT.

In 1996, Congress established the Commission on Servicemembers and

Veterans Transition Assistance and directed it to review programs that

provide benefits and services to veterans and service members making the

transition to civilian life. The Transition Commission examined preseparation counseling and transition assistance program workshops as

part of its work.5

Each branch of the military provides the required pre-separation

counseling and offers workshops focusing on employment assistance and

veterans’ benefits, although not all service members participate. In

addition, disabled service members are provided detailed information on

benefits and services available to service members with disabilities as well

as assistance in accessing these services. The military branches have

considerable flexibility in designing their programs, allowing them to vary

the content as well as the delivery of their programs. Moreover, the

priorities of the military mission can also affect delivery and access to

transition assistance.

 5

 Report of the Congressional Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans Transition

Assistance (Washington, D.C.: 1999).

Transition Assistance

Varies in Key Ways

Across the Military

Branches
Page 5 GAO-02-914T

All military branches provide pre-separation counseling and offer

transition workshops that include employment assistance and information

on veterans’ benefits. However, military branch data indicate that not all

service members receive the required pre-separation counseling or

participate in the workshops. As shown in table 2, in fiscal year 2001, 81

percent of service members received pre-separation counseling,6

 and 53

percent attended a transition workshop. The transition workshop

participation rates for each branch ranged from 29 percent for the Coast

Guard to 72 percent for the Navy. These participation rates may not be

reliable because some branches’ data include service members who

participated but did not separate. To the extent that this is occurring, the

percentages on participation are overstated.

Table 2: Participation in Pre-Separation Counseling and Transition Assistance Workshops by Military Branch, Fiscal Year

2001

Participation Air Force Army Marines Navy

Coast

Guard

Total or

Average

Total Separated/Retired 43,756 85,190 31,319 57,452a4,037 221,754

Number of pre-separation counselings 39,375 77,146 27,849 30,508 N/Ab174,878

Percent receiving pre-separation counseling 90%c

91% 89% 53% N/Ab81%

Number attending transition assistance workshopd27,815 28,464 21,397 41,181 1,155e120,012

Percent attending workshop 64% 33% 68% 72% 29% 53%

a

 According to the Navy, this total includes 8,387 service members in training who were not required

to receive pre-separation counseling because they had less than 180 days of active duty.

b

 The Coast Guard does not have an automated system to collect these data.

c

 Air Force officials told us that a record audit conducted in 2000 indicated that 97 percent of its

separating and retiring service members received pre-separation counseling in 1999. However, they

did not provide more current audit results.

d

 We are not reporting participation in disabled transition assistance workshops because VA does not

collect this information.

e

 This number represents Coast Guard service members who attended Coast Guard facilitated

workshops.

Source: GAO analyses of data provided by the military branches.

In addition to pre-separation counseling and the transition assistance

workshops, the military branches may provide optional services such as

(1) help with resume writing, (2) career counseling, (3) training in job

 6

 This does not include the percentage of Coast Guard service members who received preseparation counseling.

Military Branches Provide

Required Services, but

Participation Varies
Page 6 GAO-02-914T

interview skills and strategies, (4) stress management, (5) job fairs, and (6)

access to automated job listings.

Service members separating with a disability are offered more detailed

information relevant to their unique needs. For these service members, VA

offers detailed information on VA disability-related benefits such as

disability compensation, health care and vocational rehabilitation, as well

as assistance in accessing them.7 These efforts are considered to be a part

of the disability transition assistance program.

Because the military experiences of the members in each branch are

different, some branches tailor the content of transition services to better

meet the needs of their service members. For example, the Army believes

that many of its separating soldiers need additional employment-related

assistance and more individualized attention. A large number of the

Army’s separating service members have held combat-related jobs, which

provide skills that have limited transferability to jobs in the civilian labor

market. Further, many of these soldiers are young and have little civilian

work experience. Therefore, the Army supplements DOD transition

assistance funds to provide additional one-on-one counseling and

interactive job training and assistance.

The Coast Guard also tailors the content of its program to meet what it

believes are the unique needs of its service members. According to the

program manager, many separating members of the Coast Guard have

unique classifications like Marine Science Technician, a job category not

easily transferable to the civilian labor market. In an attempt to provide

their members with transition assistance workshops that will help them

find appropriate civilian employment, the Coast Guard hires contractors to

facilitate its transition assistance workshops. The contractor staff is

trained along with the Coast Guard’s transition assistance coordinators to

help service members identify their most marketable skills and

communicate them in a way that will make them successful in the civilian

labor market.

The military branches also have different methods of delivering both preseparation counseling and workshops. For example, some military

 7

 VA compensates veterans who are disabled by injury or disease incurred or aggravated

during active military service.

Service Members

Experience Differences in

Content, Delivery, and

Access to Transition

Services
Page 7 GAO-02-914T

branches provide pre-separation counseling in individual sessions prior to

attendance at a transition workshop, while others may provide group

counseling. In addition, the length of transition workshops can vary by

location. While the transition assistance workshop was designed to take 3

days, the schedule of workshops for fiscal year 2002 shows the actual time

ranges from 1 day to 5 days depending on the local arrangements between

military installations and DOL. For example, according to the program

manager, the Navy added a day to the 3-day workshop to provide more

detailed information on military benefits. Further, program officials told us

that at some locations different transition assistance workshops are

provided to separating and retiring military members. For example, at one

location we visited the separatees had a 2-day transition assistance

workshop and the retirees had a 3-day workshop. Transition assistance

program managers told us that workshops can be offered in a variety of

settings. For example, at one location, the workshop was offered in a

religious education building. At another, it was offered in space rented at a

nearby hotel. At several locations we visited, class size greatly exceeded

the maximum of 50, recommended in the MOU. At one location, to

accommodate large numbers of service members separating with the

number of workshops scheduled, the workshop had 300 participants.

Other adjustments to the delivery of transition assistance are potentially

more far-reaching. For example, to create a more comprehensive

approach to career planning, the Air Force is integrating transition

assistance into the role of a work life consultant who works with airmen

throughout their military career. This individual serves as a focal point for

information on all personnel matters and helps with paperwork for

anticipated separations and retirements. The Navy is providing transition

assistance services earlier in a sailor’s military career than the law requires

to help them more easily translate their military experience into the

civilian labor force when they do separate. The Navy has also broadened

the mission of its transition assistance program to increase retention by

providing professional career development resources throughout the

service member’s military career. Providing earlier services responds to

comments from service members that they would benefit from beginning

the transition process sooner than 90 days before separation.

The delivery of transition assistance for disabled service members appears

to be more consistent across the branches. In the past, disabled service

members were primarily offered separate disability transition assistance

briefings supplemented by individualized assistance upon request. The

current practice is generally to provide a basic discussion of disability

benefits and services as part of the transition assistance workshop
Page 8 GAO-02-914T

provided to all participants, supplemented by one-on-one sessions with

disabled service members, upon request. However, some locations still

offer a separate disability transition assistance briefing. In addition, as part

of an initiative in two regions, VA provides special 3-5 day workshops

focusing on the unique needs of disabled veterans seeking employment.

Service members also experience variation in access to transition

assistance based on specific circumstances. Service members who are

deployed, stationed in remote locations, or engaged in essential military

duties may access a modified version of transition assistance services. For

example, the Marines place a transition assistance specialist on some

ships and give priority to those who will be separating from the military

within 90 days or less. The specialist offers a condensed version of the

transition assistance workshop and will meet with Marines during their

free time, which could be anytime of the day or night.

Service members stationed in remote locations also received modified

versions of transition assistance. For example, a significant percent of

service members in the Coast Guard tend to be stationed in remote areas

far from where the transition assistance workshops are offered. To

address their needs for transition assistance, the Coast Guard sends a

videotape accompanied by the DOL workbook. The videotape presents

general information on how to conduct a job search and the workbook

covers the topics offered in the transition assistance workshops. The Army

also mails materials to soldiers in remote locations and follows up with

distance counseling by telephone, fax, or e-mail. In addition, the Army will

send transition assistance specialists periodically to remote sites with

small populations of soldiers.

Even when service members are in locations where a range of transition

services can be offered on site, military mission and the support that

supervisors have for transition services may determine the degree to

which they have access to the services. Because the military mission is

always the top priority, it can be difficult for service members to be

released from military duties to receive services. Service members,

supervisors, commanders, and transition assistance program staff at the

locations we visited told us that because of mission-related work

priorities, service members may receive transition assistance later than is

optimal. Several service members told us that they had to delay attending
Page 9 GAO-02-914T

the transition workshop because of their military duties, thereby limiting

their ability to utilize other transition services.8

In addition, if supervisors are not supportive of the transition assistance,

or if they feel that mission needs are too pressing, they may be reluctant to

allow service members under them to access services offered. In 1994, we

reported that lack of support from military commanders was one of the

most frequently cited reasons for not using transition assistance.9

 In

response, the Secretary of Defense issued a memorandum to the

secretaries of the military departments and other key DOD officials

underscoring the need for commander support of transition assistance for

all service members. The Marines recently made participation in a

transition assistance workshop a mandatory activity for all Marines

because they recognized that service members were having difficulty

being released from their military duties to attend the workshops. The

Transition Commission noted that starting transition assistance earlier

could provide commanders more flexibility to meet mission needs,

because many service members are deployed during the last 6 months of

their active duty. Reducing potential mission conflicts in this way could

help increase commander support of the program, thereby resulting in

increased participation.

Several studies confirm participant satisfaction with transition assistance,

but limited information is available about the overall effectiveness of the

transition assistance program. Evaluating the effectiveness of these

services is complicated by data inadequacies and methodological

difficulties. For example, most of the data currently available are collected

for purposes of program monitoring and are not comparable across the

branches. Also, following up with service members who have separated is

challenging. Moreover, the changing nature of transition assistance could

result in a shift in emphasis on different goals, including recruitment and

retention, in addition to civilian employment.

 8

 Although they are allowed to access these services after separation, many members

return to areas that do not have these services.

9

 U.S. General Accounting Office, Military Downsizing: Persons Returning to Civilian

Life Need More Help from DOD, GAO/HEHS-94-39 (Washington, D.C.: Jan. 21, 1994).

Studies Provide

Limited Information

on the Effectiveness

of the Transition

Assistance Program
Page 10 GAO-02-914T

In 1994, we reported that service members and spouses we surveyed found

seminars and employment assistance centers were beneficial in

readjusting to civilian life. They said that they learned about individualized

job search techniques and other benefits available to them. They also

reported that their confidence had increased as a result of receiving these

services, especially in the areas of resume preparation and job search and

interview techniques.

During our interviews, service members told us that the transition

assistance workshop either met or exceeded their expectations. Many

service members told us that they thought the resume preparation and job

search and interview techniques would be the most helpful in their

transition. However, some felt that the workshop was not long enough for

them to complete preparing their resumes and develop their job

interviewing skills. Several service members told us that they had pursued

or planned to pursue additional job-related transition assistance offered at

their locations. Some service members also found other transition

assistance informative, such as financial planning, stress management, and

VA benefit information. Service members told us, however, that earlier

access to this assistance would enable them to better utilize it and smaller

class sizes would allow them adequate time for questions and answers.

In 1999, DOL sponsored a study to assess the attitudes and opinions of

participants in the transition assistance workshop.10 Twenty-one focus

groups of persons who had attended a transition assistance workshop in

the prior month were asked about the structure and content of the

workshops and the extent to which they felt their participation helped

prepare them to find civilian employment. Participants generally agreed

that the services they received contributed to their knowledge and

confidence about transitioning to civilian life. Many participants felt that

attendance in the workshop should be mandatory and that receiving the

service earlier in an individual’s military career would be beneficial.

While participants generally appear to find assistance helpful, much less is

known about the ultimate impact of transition services on employment or

other outcomes, such as education and retention. Two studies conducted

about 10 years ago found limited impact of transition assistance on

employment. An early DOL evaluation required by the Congress assessed

 10 U.S. Department of Labor/Veterans’ Employment and Training, TAP Focus Group

Evaluation Final Report (Washington, D.C.: 2000).

Studies Indicate

Participant Satisfaction

with Services, but Less Is

Known about

Effectiveness
Page 11 GAO-02-914T

the impact of the pilot transition assistance program on service members

who transitioned to civilian life in 1992.11 This study compared a sample of

those who had attended a transition assistance workshop with those who

had not to analyze whether transition assistance had any effect on post

military job search and employment. Although both groups were found to

have similar aspirations for jobs, careers and salaries, the results indicated

little difference between the employability of those who had taken the

workshop and those who had not. However, the study noted that service

members who received transition assistance found jobs 3 to 7 weeks

earlier than those who had not.

The Army sponsored an evaluation of its Job Assistance Centers to

determine whether services provided at these centers affect soldiers’

employment outcomes.12 A group of ex-service members who separated

between October 1, 1992, and September 30, 1993 were interviewed to

determine whether the job assistance services they received affected their

post-transition earnings, receipt of unemployment compensation, and

ratings of preparedness for the job market. The study reported that

individuals who said they had received more job search assistance

services, and those who indicated a greater degree of satisfaction with the

services, were more likely to feel prepared for the civilian labor market

and were also more likely to have some increase in earnings. However,

because this study did not verify the self reported information, the

conclusions cannot be validated.

Currently at least two branches of the military, the Army and Navy, track

the amount of unemployment compensation paid to separating service

members as an indicator of program effectiveness. For example, the Army

reports that the amount of unemployment compensation benefits paid to

soldiers separating in fiscal year 2001 was about half that paid out in fiscal

year 1994. However, Army officials concede that it would be difficult to

attribute these changes to transition assistance services alone.

 11 U.S. Department of Labor/Veterans’ Employment and Tranining,Transition Assistance

Program: Phase III Impact Analysis (Washington, D.C.: 1995).

12 Human Resources Research Organization/U.S. Army Research Institute for the

Behavioral and Social Sciences, Final Report: Outcome Evaluation of the Army Career

and Alumni Program’s Job Assistance Centers (Alexandria, Va.: 1995).
Page 12 GAO-02-914T

Several factors complicate evaluating the effectiveness of human resource

interventions, including the transition assistance program. First, achieving

consensus on program goals is necessary to develop measurement and

data collection strategies. Second, service branch data on what specific

assistance service members received is necessary to compare the effects

of different interventions. Third, following up periodically after separation

with those who received services as well as those who did not is necessary

to try to isolate the impact of transition assistance.

Assessing overall effectiveness of the transition assistance program would

require agreement on what the program is trying to accomplish. When first

piloted, the objectives of the program included helping the military meet

its personnel needs as well as helping separating service members meet

their needs. However, since that time, the goals have expanded as a result

of changing military needs and service member expectations. When the

program was fully implemented, it dropped the retention goal and focused

on providing transition assistance, coinciding with the downsizing of the

military. During this time, the program focused on employment-related

transition assistance. The Transition Commission noted that transition

assistance needs to continually evolve to remain capable of bridging the

ever-changing military and civilian environments.

Service members also seek assistance with furthering their education or

obtaining vocational rehabilitation in addition to employment-related

transition assistance. For example, some service members enlisted with

the specific intention of returning to school at the completion of their

military service rather than working right away. Moreover, the military’s

personnel needs have changed from downsizing to recruiting and retaining

service members. The Transition Commission reported, for example, that

retention was positively affected by transition assistance because it offers

a realistic view of civilian job market prospects. This may lead some

service members to conclude that they need more preparation to reenter

the civilian workforce and to postpone separation to gain additional skills,

education, or income.

Data limitations also make transition assistance program evaluations

difficult. There is limited data on the services individual service members

actually receive and virtually no data collected on how they fare after

leaving the military. DOL is required to collect participant data for the

transition assistance workshops it provides, and although not required, the

military branches collect data to monitor program participation. However,

these data are often not comparable, and service members may also obtain

military branch-sponsored assistance at locations where they are

Evaluating Effectiveness

of Transition Assistance is

Challenging
Page 13 GAO-02-914T

stationed. In addition, service members may obtain assistance from VA or

community sources that might not be documented in DOL’s or the military

branches’ records. This makes valid comparisons across branches very

complicated.

Finally, following up periodically with individuals once they leave the

military to assess how they are faring in civilian life is difficult. In its 1995

study of the transition assistance program, DOL reported the difficulty it

experienced trying to follow up with separated service members. Officials

we interviewed told us about similar experiences. For example, one

transition assistance workshop facilitator told us that he was able to

follow up with only about 20 percent of workshop participants. The

Transition Commission noted that DOD, VA, and DOL each have separate

data collection systems with their own information that could help

determine the usefulness of transition assistance, but little has been

accomplished to coordinate information requirements between the

departments. Collecting the data necessary to track long-term usage and

outcomes would help better position the departments to assess the value

of transition assistance as well as determine ways to improve it.

Mr. Chairman, this concludes my prepared remarks. I would be happy to

answer any questions that you or the other subcommittee members might

have.

For further information regarding this testimony, please contact me at

(202) 512-7101 or Shelia Drake at (202) 512-7172. Margaret Boeckmann,

William R. Chatlos, Corinna Nicolaou, Linda Stokes, and Paul Wright also

contributed to this statement.

Contact and

Acknowledgments

(130125)