Examination of Witnesses (Questions 120-127)
MR TIM
CORRY AND
MS SARAH
BAXTER
1 APRIL 2008
Q120 Mr Jenkins: What about the retention
rate? What impact does it have on people who are thinking of continuing
or coming out and also on the rate of recruitment? If there is
someone in the reserves working alongside you would you want to
learn his experiences and how he had been treated?
Mr Corry: Again, I can speak only
anecdotally. I am aware of the study and I can think of perhaps
one or two instances where someone has had medical issues back
in the workplace, but it is not something that is a big issue
for employers. They are all concerned about it but I can probably
count on the fingers of one hand the number of events when something
goes wrong. The perception is probably greater than the reality.
I am not being complacent in saying that. Who can tell what will
happen to those individuals in 10 or 15 years' time?
Q121 Richard Younger-Ross: A young
lad who comes back from Afghanistan may have seen a friend's legs
blown off; maybe he has seen other people injured and killed.
The chances are that at some point there will be a kickback particularly
when he returns to civilian life. What do you do to alert employers
to the dangers and risks to that person's health? If not, do you
think there is anything that could be done because obviously it
is important that there should be early intervention and help?
An individual will be in denial; he may not be sleeping at night
but says to himself that he is a big boy and he can cope with
it when in reality he cannot. What can you do, or what can be
done?
Mr Corry: At a slightly superficial
level we do make employers aware of the reintegration issue because
these people have had a stressful time. One issue is that employers
and the public generally do not realise what some of these people
go through, so trying to describe to people what the experience
has been like is quite difficult. Therefore, at the level we work
the most we can do is to make employers aware that there could
be issues.
Q122 Richard Younger-Ross: Is there
a pack or video you send to employers showing what people have
been through and the possible consequences?
Mr Corry: Not in the detail that
you suggest.
Ms Baxter: It can be difficult
enough to engage in a meaningful dialogue with employers about
reservists anyway. I am certainly not belittling the issues we
are talking about, but it is a question of how far down the line
one is with the relationship.
Q123 Richard Younger-Ross: Do you
think it might put off employers?
Ms Baxter: It is a very delicate
balance to strike. We are trying to get employers to accept employees
who are reservists, let alone tell them that they could have broken
individuals returning to them.
Q124 Mr Havard: They need to have
realistic expectations and know what support might be available
should this happen. I noticed that the programme for reservists
was set up in 2006. My colleague Brian Jenkins referred to the
experience of that. The point Richard Younger-Ross makes is: how
do people present? These conditions do not always present. Not
every employer can expect to have a broken reservist returning
to him. Most reservists who return are not broken; they are enhanced.
How do you make that clear? How do you identify the problem for
the individual and how do you give clarity to the employer about
what the expectations might be? I would guess that is a difficult
route. What is your experience of the Ministry of Defence in helping
you to do that because that come down to you as far as employer
expectation is concerned?
Mr Corry: Indeed. Certainly, we
would not be looking to hide the problems. I have no statistics
to show how many people this affects. If we did we would not be
ashamed to share that with employers and be realistic because
one of the strengths of SaBRE is that it is impartial, open and
honest. We have nothing to hide. Broadly speaking, there is a
good, new story out there but there are also some down sides to
it—the bit that you suggest—and they should be shared
with employers too. If one had some concrete evidence of the real
facts and the likelihood of this happening, etc, one would certainly
package it up in a way to communicate with employers.
Q125 Mr Havard: But the programme
of support is self-selecting by the individual who cries out for
help in the area of mental health. How much do employers and others
understand the process of support that is available? You appear
to suggest that you do explain it in some fashion, but does it
need to be done better by others as well as yourselves?
Mr Corry: The answer is probably
yes.
Q126 Mr Havard: We know that the
answer is yes.
Mr Corry: But I am not sure how
best it should be done.
Q127 Mr Jenkins: Do you think that
reservists are treated as second-class soldiers in any way by
the MoD with regard to the provision of health?
Mr Corry: No.
Ms Baxter: I do not think so.
Chairman: Thank you both very much for
starting us off this morning. We are extremely grateful to you
for coming to give evidence.
| 
