They want you
About 300 army reservists needed across Cape Breton
Cape Breton’s army reserve is stepping up its recruitment efforts as it looks to hire hundreds of citizen soldiers from across the island.
All of the positions are parttime and include perks such as funding for post-secondary tuition, school credits, dental coverage and trades training and designations.
About 300 people are needed at armouries in Sydney, Glace Bay and Port Hawkesbury. There are currently about 250 people serving as reservists on the island.
Maj. Jason Doyle said open houses were held across the country Saturday to help boost dwindling recruitment numbers.
“I’ve been in (the reserves) 22 years and the basic course I did had 75 people in it. The last one we ran had 15,” said Doyle.
“We don’t do a very good job of advertising ourselves that we’re here, and the process has been tough to get through at times, and we’re trying to change that to make it so people can get through faster.”
Past applications could take up to three months to be processed. In Cape Breton, military personnel are offered specialized training in the areas of infantry, service battalion, field ambulance, signals and engineering.
In order to maintain employment, reservists must adhere to a minimum commitment of working at least one evening a week and one weekend a month.
“The opportunities that I’ve had have been amazing,” said Doyle. “I’ve been to Europe twice. I’ve been to the (United) States multiple times with training all paid for by the military.
“Yes, I was working most of the time but you also have an opportunity to interact with people from all over the world and to see those foreign countries in a way that you wouldn’t necessarily get to see them.”
Starting rates for privates is $105 a day, while officers begin at $114 a day. Within two years, as training is completed, corporals can earn about $150 a day. The compensation continues to rise in accordance to rank.
After three months of service, reservists are eligible for 90 per cent dental coverage, while funding is also available for students who attend post-secondary programs.
Doyle said there are also some full-time work opportunities and reservists enjoy the benefit of being able to transfer their skills and training to Armed Forces locations around the country.
In the years that followed Canada’s military role in Afghanistan, Doyle said he felt some potential recruits shied away over concerns they might be forced to serve overseas.
“You don’t get deployed on a operational task like that unless you volunteer,” he said. “As reservists we’re a volunteer force. It would take an act of government to be ordered to go somewhere.”
Mikayla MacNeil, a Grade 12 student at Rankin School of the Narrows in Iona, was among the small crowd gathered at Victoria Park on Saturday morning. MacNeil said she is interested in join the regular forces to train as anesthesiologist.
“I kind of want to travel,” she said. “I’ve always had an interest in medicine and it seems like we don’t have a lot of anesthesiologists around because the schooling is so long.”
Rob Joseph said Saturday he has already applied to become a reservist and wanted to check out the displays offered at the garrison. The Sydney dentist received medical training through a subsided program after joining the regular forces in Halifax in 2007.
“I think what’s important about it here, especially in Cape Breton where it’s short on employment, is there’s an awful lot of skills people can obtain,” said Joseph. “There’s a lot of young people who could get some free training and education while earning a bit of a paycheque, so it’s a great opport unity.”
Anyone interested in recruitment through the reserves can call the Sydney garrison at 902563-7100, extensions 7109 or 7110, or by emailing sydney_recruiting@forces.gc.ca.