Posted: Tuesday, November 1, 2005 6:00 pm
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have placed heavy demands on the U.S. military. To cope with the strain the Pentagon came up with a plan to expand the Army, which has absorbed much of the workload in Iraq and sustained 68 percent of the more than 2,000 fatalities.
Unfortunately the Army’s recruiting efforts have been disappointing, which means the Army will continue to struggle without additional troops while it continues to carry a heavy load in Iraq.
The Army’s recruiting shortfall of more than 6,500 was the biggest in the past quarter century. Also experiencing shortfalls were the Army Reserves, which reached only 54 percent of its goal and the Army National Guard, which reached only 80 percent.
Among the reasons for the failure to meet recruiting goals were the Iraq war and increased reluctance by parents to support their children’s enlistment, according to Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey.
Some observers believe the condition of the Army has reached a perilous state. “Now they’ve broken the Army, and after this administration is history, it will take 12 or 15 or 20 years to repair the damage it’s inflicted on an institution that our country desperately needs in a century as this one,” wrote Joseph L. Galloway, senior military correspondent for Knight Ridder Newspapers and co-author of the national best-seller, “We Were Soldiers Once … and Young.”
Other branches of the military have not experienced the same problems. The Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy all met the recruiting goals.
In addition, the Army has experienced remarkable success in retention, recording 108 percent of its target goal. Reenlistment was high among soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
But the failure to reach recruitment goals has ramifications beyond the damage done to expansion plans. The Army, for example, must continue to order personnel in certain specialized jobs to stay in the service beyond the expiration of their contract. The Pentagon also has lowered its minimum testing qualification standards and intends to privatize some jobs on military bases.
The Pentagon currently is developing new plans to bolster recruitment, including proposals to double the maximum enlistment bonus from $20,000 to $40,000, and a proposed mortgage program that would make a $25,000 down payment on a home for soldiers with four years of service.
The new lures, if approved by Congress, might help the Army achieve its expansion goals. Recruiters said they were able to achieve monthly goals in September after lagging earlier in the year.
But the shortfall in Army recruiting is an issue that cannot be ignored for long. America’s all-volunteer Army has been overworked and is in danger of becoming worn out. It needs fresh troops.