Army recruiters extended on assignment as branch struggles to fill ranks

GEAR CHECK: Our readers don't just follow the news - they stay ready. Featured gear from this story is below.

Jamie Goldstein

Army recruiters are being involuntarily extended on their assignments as every branch continues to fall short of their recruitment goals.

This month, U.S. Army Recruiting Command sent an internal memo communicating that the element will not be able to to accomplish its current mission of recruiting 60,000 active duty troops by the end of the fiscal year this October, without extending Army recruiters involuntarily.

According to Army Recruiting Command spokesperson, Brian McGovern, the Army has 267 “high performing” recruiters identified who will be extended on their current recruiting assignment involuntarily. This detachment is of the 5,319 current active-duty Army recruiters.

<iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true" class="" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 654px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="Twitter Tweet" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=PopSmokeMedia&dnt=true&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1536427693809483783&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.popsmokemedia.com%2Farmy-recruiters-extended-on-assignment-as-branch-struggles-to-fill-ranks%2F&sessionId=45b5a8d15cbbc47db2558ebea4257cb54e8e1f20&siteScreenName=PopSmokeMedia&theme=light&widgetsVersion=aaf4084522e3a%3A1674595607486&width=550px" data-tweet-id="1536427693809483783"></iframe>

In a statement to Military.com, McGovern said “Based on the current challenges we face, the recruiting mission for Fiscal Year 2022 led to the decision to extend selected Recruiting NCOs through both the conclusion of the Fiscal Year 2022 mission and into the initial months of the Fiscal Year 2023 mission, in order to develop momentum going into the next accessions mission cycle.”

The military as a whole is struggling to hit their recruitment goals. The Department of Defense attributes this to both a highly competitive labor market and an inability to incentivize Generation Z to join the military. Additionally, only approximately 25% of military aged citizens are mentally, physically, psychologically, and administratively qualified to serve.

In an effort to connect with today’s American youth, Army leadership orchestrated an event this past weekend with current social media influencers in the greater D.C. area. Most of these influencers occupy the fitness vertical which is valuable to the military considering that their current followers are more likely to be physically qualified for service. The influencers are currently scheduled to meet with Army public affairs leadership as well as Sergeant Major of the Army Michael.

<iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true" class="" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 621px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="Twitter Tweet" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=PopSmokeMedia&dnt=true&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1534901006202437633&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.popsmokemedia.com%2Farmy-recruiters-extended-on-assignment-as-branch-struggles-to-fill-ranks%2F&sessionId=45b5a8d15cbbc47db2558ebea4257cb54e8e1f20&siteScreenName=PopSmokeMedia&theme=light&widgetsVersion=aaf4084522e3a%3A1674595607486&width=550px" data-tweet-id="1534901006202437633"></iframe>

This large scale, branch level initiative follows smaller, unit based efforts to communicate more effectively on social media. Examples of this include the South Dakota National Guard who uses comedy and irreverence to recruit, and the New Jersey Air National Guard whose social media is run by Pop Smoke Media

You may also like

Blog

President Donald Trump reportedly confronted Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during a closed-door meeting at Camp David after learning the Pentagon's stockpile of precision-guided munitions had fallen to critical levels. The White House has denied the report, but the episode has intensified scrutiny over whether America's military can sustain a prolonged conflict with Iran while maintaining global readiness.
Taiwan has begun its largest and most realistic Han Kuang military exercise to date, mobilizing thousands of troops, reservists and civilians as Beijing continues to increase military pressure around the island. The 10-day drills are designed to prepare for a potential Chinese invasion and test whether Taiwan can keep fighting even after its command centers, communications and infrastructure come under attack.
A fast-moving wildfire tore through Spokane County, Washington, over the weekend, forcing tens of thousands of residents to evacuate and destroying hundreds of homes and businesses. Authorities are now investigating the cause as firefighters race to contain one of the state's most destructive blazes of the year.
More than 30 municipal water systems in Minnesota were targeted in a coordinated cyberattack this week, and U.S. intelligence agencies believe Iran was likely behind it. While investigators have not reached a final conclusion, officials say the incident fits a growing pattern of cyber operations against America's critical infrastructure since the U.S.-Iran war began earlier this year.
The Pentagon is facing criticism after moving some casualties from the Iran conflict into a new reporting category called "Overseas Operations." Defense officials say the change reflects the end of Operation Epic Fury and the start of a new phase of fighting, while veterans and several lawmakers argue it creates confusion over the true human cost of the war.

Like This Story? Check Out What Our Community Is Buying

Our best sellers are designed for real-world use - not hype.

View Best Sellers