The stigma of reporting it to employers or refusing support

Australia is home to almost half a million military veterans, most of whom are employed in the workforce.

But most—around 60%—living with long-term health problems.

About half of this face lasting mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and an increased risk of suicide.

By reporting these conditions, people with these conditions may be able to receive support in the workplace. However, many people keep this secret, partly out of fear of stigma.

And silence can build itself.

Where full disclosure is required, particularly for Australian Government positions requiring security clearance, veterans who remain silent may find themselves forced to remain silent and even seek outside help without reporting it.

Staying silent has consequences

This can result in employees harming themselves or experiencing a mental health crisis in the workplace because their employers are unaware of their condition and unable to provide help.

Our team at the University of Queensland conducted a study study of the circumstances in which veterans speak out to understand how they navigate the conflicting needs to connect and belong.

The project is funded by the university and an internship group Apprenticeships on the East Coast.

While it is too early to share results, our surveys and interviews point to a wide range of approaches to disclosure.

On the one hand, veterans tell us they don’t want to tell anyone about their medical concerns, not even their partners.

This may be because veterans feel that no one can understand or empathize with their situation. Furthermore, any openness about their situation can damage relationships.

Being publicly ‘unmasked’ can be humiliating

At the other end of the spectrum, veterans face official demands for repeated disclosure, sometimes as often as every six months.

They feel that their private lives are constantly visible to their managers and an unknown number of HR managers.

One of them said he had publicly “come out” when he applied for a government position.

In a room of hundreds of applicants, he said, veterans were asked to raise their hands if they had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. They were then given multi-page booklets to fill out detailing their conditions, treatment and medication regimens, long after the other applicants had left.

For many it is a complicated magic trick

Another veteran said he had to go through a complicated decision-making process every time a contract came up for renewal or was offered a new contract.

The veteran took into account the length of the contract, the contracting company’s health policies and reporting requirements, and what the company said it would provide for mental health care.

Importantly, this veteran also investigated what the construction company actually did by asking other veterans.

Only when the veteran feels able to assess the risk of disclosure himself will he consider continuing with the contract.

Many employers have the interests of their employees in mind, but are unable to communicate this convincingly.

One business owner (himself a veteran) said the best way to gain the veterans’ trust was to first disclose an aspect of his own health condition. It was a way to accommodate the requester.

Our study has a way to succeed. There is a chance that the findings could save lives by making it easier for veterans to disclose their conditions and get support.

This article has been republished from The conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.