Army AND Marines facing Recruiting Shortfall
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  Army AND Marines facing Recruiting Shortfall
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Frodo
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« on: February 21, 2005, 06:10:20 AM »
« edited: March 03, 2005, 06:22:12 AM by Frodo »

if this trend continues, how does the Pentagon expect to add 40,000 troops at minimum to the force if they can barely hold on to the men and women they already have? 

Army Having Difficulty Meeting Goals In Recruiting
Fewer Enlistees Are in Pipeline; Many Being Rushed Into Service

By Ann Scott Tyson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 21, 2005; Page A01

The active-duty Army is in danger of failing to meet its recruiting goals, and is beginning to suffer from manpower strains like those that have dropped the National Guard and Reserves below full strength, according to Army figures and interviews with senior officers .

For the first time since 2001, the Army began the fiscal year in October with only 18.4 percent of the year's target of 80,000 active-duty recruits already in the pipeline. That amounts to less than half of last year's figure and falls well below the Army's goal of 25 percent.

Meanwhile, the Army is rushing incoming recruits into training as quickly as it can. Compared with last year, it has cut by 50 percent the average number of days between the time a recruit signs up and enters boot camp. It is adding more than 800 active-duty recruiters to the 5,201 who were on the job last year, as attracting each enlistee requires more effort and monetary incentives.

Driving the manpower crunch is the Army's goal of boosting the number of combat brigades needed to rotate into Iraq and handle other global contingencies. Yet Army officials see worrisome signs that young American men and women -- and their parents -- are growing wary of military service, largely because of the Iraq conflict.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40469-2005Feb20.html
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U.S. Marines, Amid Iraq War, Miss Recruiting Goals

Wed Mar 2, 2005 05:06 PM ET
By Will Dunham

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Marine Corps for the second straight month in February missed its goal for signing up new recruits, the Marines said on Wednesday, in another sign of the Iraq war's effect on military recruiting.

"It is a challenging recruiting environment right now," said Maj. David Griesmer, spokesman for the Marine Corps Recruiting Command.

For the first time in more than a decade, the Marines in January fell short of their monthly goal for new recruits signing enlistment contracts to begin serving within a year. The Marines missed their monthly goal again in February by more than 6 percent, Griesmer said.

In February, Marines signed up 2,772 of a target of 2,964 (93.5 percent). Some of them will join a total force of 177,000.

But Griesmer noted that in both months, the Marines reached their goals for new recruits actually entering boot camp. So a higher percentage of those who promised to enlist followed through and entered the Corps.

In year-to-date figures for the current fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, the Marines were 1 percent behind their goal for signing up new recruits and 2 percent ahead in shipping new recruits into boot camp.

The recruiting shortfalls come as Marines play an integral role in military operations in Iraq, which have caused a steady stream of combat deaths. Marines have performed some of the most dangerous and grueling tasks in the guerrilla war, for example spearheading the November offensive in Fallujah.

Pentagon leaders also have expressed concern about recruiting for the active-duty Army and the Army Reserve and National Guard.

In describing the recruiting challenge faced by the Marines, Griesmer mentioned the Iraq war and said recruiters are having to work hard to sell the idea of military service to potential recruits and their parents.

Griesmer said other factors also are playing a role, including a strengthening economy and the growing number of young Americans entering college. He also said the Marines plan to add 275 recruiters over the next three years.

Gen. Michael Hagee, commandant of the Marine Corps, told reporters last week he was optimistic about reaching recruiting goals for the current fiscal year.

"What the recruiters are telling us is that they have to spend more time with the parents. And regardless of whether the individual American is 17 or 18 or 19, parents have influence -- rightly so -- on the decisions that these young men and young women are going to make," Hagee said.

"And they're saying, 'It's not, maybe, a bad idea to join the Marine Corps, but why don't you consider it a year from now or two years from now? Let's think about this.' So the recruiters are having to work much harder out there right now."

The Marines also are offering new reenlistment bonuses to help convince troops who are completing their volunteer service commitment to sign up for another tour of duty.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7789418&src=rss/topNews

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opebo
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« Reply #1 on: February 21, 2005, 07:17:48 AM »

This is interesting - two trends battling it out:  the rapidly increasing impoverishment of the lower 80% of the population driving them to enlist, and their natural inclination to avoid being killed/crippled/disfigured.
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AuH2O
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« Reply #2 on: February 21, 2005, 07:28:27 AM »

Actually, the higher-class people (those in officer training) are requesting Infantry at a higher rate than before the war.
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