Recruits, Uncle Sam wants you
Army’s $300M drive aims to enlist 6,000
The Army plans to spend $300 million in a blitz of bonuses and advertising over the next eight months to recruit 6,000 soldiers it needs to fill out its ranks.
Legislation approved by Congress and signed late last year by President Obama halted a years-long troop drawdown. Rising threats around the world have spurred the increase. The Army’s new goal for the remaining eight months of the fiscal year is 68,500 recruits, up from 62,500. The addition of 6,000 recruits makes it the largest in-year increase in the history of the allvolunteer force that dates to 1973.
Rapidly growing the Army has come at a different type of cost in the past: Lower standards for recruits produced subpar soldiers. Many had to be culled after training. That won’t happen this time, said Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Snow, who leads Army Recruiting Command.
“There is very clear guidance from the leadership in our conversations that there is no desire to lower standards,” Snow said.
By Oct. 1, the Army must hit its target of 476,000 active-duty soldiers, up from the previous goal of 460,000. Recruiting along with retention of more soldiers will make up the gap. President Trump has said he wants an even larger force — as
many as 60,000 more soldiers.
The Air Force and Navy also are boosting their ranks. The Air Force plans to recruit and retain more service members to meet its goal of 321,000 by Oct. 1, up 4,000 from its current 317,000, said Ann Stefanek, an Air Force spokeswoman. The Navy plans to add 2,200 recruits this fiscal year, said spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen. The Marine Corps will add nearly 800 recruits to hit its target of 185,000, said spokeswoman Yvonne Carlock.
Adding just 6,000 soldiers by October will cost the Army $200 million for bonuses, $100 million in advertising and at least $10 million more to bolster the corps of recruiters and for processing recruits, Snow said. Hefty price tags will accompany future efforts to expand the Army, he said.
Congress has not yet approved money to pay for the troop requirement, and it doesn’t appear to be in a rush to do so before late April, when the temporary legislation funding the federal government expires, said Todd Harrison of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan think tank.
Snow outlined his strategy in an interview with USA TODAY:
uBonuses. The Army will double bonuses to as much as $40,000 in hard-to-fill specialties, Snow said. The $200 million in bonuses between now and Oct. 1 compares with $284 million for all of 2016.
uAdvertising. The Army plans to spend $100 million on marketing to reach new recruits. About 75% will be national ads, and 25% in local markets, Snow said. The ads will make reference to the $40,000 bonuses. uShorter enlistments. The Army will offer a two-year enlistment, down from the usual requirement of three, four or more years. A two-year hitch is expected to appeal to high school seniors who want a break before college, Snow said. The hope is that many short-termers will stay after being exposed to Army life.