Our enlisted workforce faces a mental health crisis, dealing with issues that are out of our control, but directly impact our ability to thrive both on and off the job. They include the ever-increasing cost of living without equally rising pay/allowances, an inflated housing market, sub-par medical care, and mission related stressors. From my years of enlisted service, I know that the greatest risks during operational missions have been when my head simply is not in the game. Mental health suffers when the pressures from bills, credit card debt, poor housing options, and lack of quality medical care begin to add up. Decision-making and mission readiness is at its poorest when mental health degrades, increasing risk potential and skyrocketing the probability for job-related injuries.
Inflation and Increased Cost of Living
Enlisted wages are not appropriately compensating for inflation and a rapidly increasing cost of living. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “the Consumer Price Index rose 7.9 percent from February 2021 to February 2022, following a 12-month increase of 7.5 percent in January 2022. Food prices increased 7.9 percent for the year ended February 2022, the largest 12-month advance since July 1981. Energy prices rose 25.6 percent from February 2021 to February 2022, while prices for all items less food and energy rose 6.4 percent.” Coupled with the fact that military base pay only increased 2.7 percent in 2022, and the stage has been set for increased stress in your average enlisted-supported home, with junior petty officers especially vulnerable.
Housing
When the mission is achieved and liberty is granted, our enlisted workforce deserves to return home to safe, adequate housing. This is becoming increasingly difficult to find, propelled by a global pandemic that has seen an immense increase in housing prices. In fact, “over the last 12 months, the Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price index has risen by 18.6 percent” and “asking rental prices, as measured by the Zillow Observed Rental Index (ZORI), initially fell during the pandemic but have since recovered and now exceed their pre-pandemic trend.” Overall, the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) must increase nationwide. Disturbingly, there are units and certain pay grades where BAH has actually decreased. It cannot be understated how disparaging this issue is to the mental health of active duty enlisted sailors. Even in areas with the option for military housing, these communities largely are woefully inadequate. Whether due to age of the structures or understaffing of housing maintenance personnel, most military housing is in a sad state of disrepair, impairing a service member’s ability to de-stress and mentally unwind at home.
Mental Healthcare
There is a long-running joke regarding military health care that anything and everything can be cured with an 800-mg Motrin and a light duty chit. As an enlisted service member living this very witticism, I am unable to see this as a laughing matter; I would contend that every ailment is fine until it is not.
The very fact that our service members prefer to suffer in silence rather than subject themselves to the current military medical regime is a gripping indicator to just how poorly the system performs. The United States military serves as the global paragon upon which all others are compared; any inclination of a service member’s mental health struggles is seen as a failure of personal resilience and akin to dereliction of duty. This manifests deep within the psyche of our enlisted service men and women, dispelling any desire to seek help when it is needed most. This leads to a failure of mission capability at best and, at worst, can result in that service member taking his or her own life. According to an article from the United Service Organizations, “In 2021, research found that 30,177 active-duty personnel and veterans who served in the military after 9/11 have died by suicide—compared to the 7,057 service members killed in combat in those same 20 years. That is, military suicide rates are four times higher than deaths that occurred during military operations.” This cannot be overlooked any longer. The negative way mental healthcare is viewed must be radically reformed to put service members first.
Yearly Appropriations
Furthermore, our enlisted workforce also must contend with the yearly threat of a lapse of appropriations. It is beyond challenging to maintain peak operational focus with a looming threat of zero budget with which to operate. I have personally felt the pressure when the question remains: “Will I even be paid?” Congress must be held responsible to perform one of the most straightforward tasks required of them: authorize a Defense and Homeland Security budget and pay our military, the absolute backbone of our freedoms.
Considering the overwhelming array of challenges facing our enlisted today, now is the time for drastic course correction. As such, my passion, vow, purpose, and leadership philosophy will always be “People First.” No longer can the mental health crisis subjugating the enlisted remain in a shadow realm: evident to all, yet corrected by none. Remarkably, “Enlisted personnel make up about 82 percent of the Armed Forces and carry out military operations.” There can be no mission success without a healthy enlisted labor force.
