Latest news with #FortJackson
Wall Street Journal
03-06-2025
- General
- Wall Street Journal
The Army Meets Its Recruitment Goals
More than 15 years ago, I signed up to serve my country, packed my bags, and left home for Fort Jackson, S.C., to begin Army basic training. The values I gained—discipline, duty, honor—have shaped me into the husband, father and citizen I am today. Choosing to serve was one of the most meaningful decisions of my life. That's why the news that the U.S. Army has met its fiscal 2025 recruiting contract goals four months early—welcoming more than 61,000 new recruits—is personal. It's also something all Americans should be proud of.
National Post
25-05-2025
- Business
- National Post
U.S. military spent $6 billion in bonuses over three years to fix recruitment process
Article content The Army has seen the greatest recruiting struggles over the past decade, and by using a range of new programs and policies, has had one of the largest comebacks. The Navy has had the most trouble more recently, and took a number of steps to expand those eligible for service and spend more in bonuses. Article content While the Army spends hundreds of millions each year to recruit troops, it also has relied on an array of new programs and policies to woo young people. A key driver of the Army's rebound has been its decision to create the Future Soldier Prep Course at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, in August 2022. Article content That program gives lower-performing recruits up to 90 days of academic or fitness instruction to help them meet military standards and move on to basic training. It has resulted in thousands of enlistments. Article content The Air Force increased its spending on recruiting bonuses in 2023 as it also struggled to overcome shortfalls, but lowered the amount the following year. The payments were for jobs including munitions systems, aircraft maintenance and security forces. The Space Force does not currently authorize enlistment bonuses. Article content Article content The Marine Corps and the tiny Space Force have consistently hit their recruiting goals, although the Marines had to dig deep into their pool of delayed entry candidates in 2022 to meet their target. The Corps, which is much smaller than the Army and Air Force, spends the least on bonuses and tends to spread the amount among a larger number of service members. Article content Maj. Jacoby Getty, a Marine spokesman, said the spike in retention bonuses from $126 million in 2023 to $201 million in 2024 was because Marines were allowed to re-enlist a year early for the first time. More than 7,000 Marines got bonuses as a result, a jump of nearly 2,200 over the previous year. Article content When asked about bonuses in 2023, Gen. Eric Smith, the Marine commandant, famously told a naval conference that 'your bonus is you get to call yourself a Marine.' Article content 'That's your bonus, right?' he said. 'There's no dollar amount that goes with that.' Article content The services tailor their recruiting and retention money to bolster harder-to-fill jobs, including cyber, intelligence and special operations forces. The Army and Marine Corps also use the money to woo troops to some combat, armour and artillery jobs. Article content
