Army Offers $ 50,000 Bonus to Enlist Soldiers in Critical Jobs

By Lolita C. Baldor -

The Army is offering for the first time a $ 50,000 bonus to highly-skilled recruits who enlist for at least six years, in an attempt to lure soldiers into certain critical jobs left vacant by the pandemic.

Until now, the Army offered a maximum bonus of $ 40,000.

But Maj. Gen. Kevin Vereen, chief of the Army's Recruitment Command, has explained that

over the past year have created significant challenges for recruiters.

National Guard troops walk past a recruiting sign.Nathan Howard / Getty Images

About to enter the most difficult months for recruiting, the Army is confident that the extra money and other planned changes will attract qualified young people.

"We are still living through the implications of what happened in 2020, when COVID-19 started, and when school systems basically shut down," Vereen said.

"

of young men and women with whom we had no face-to-face contact."

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These two years of pandemic have complicated recruitment in schools and public events.

Competition for qualified workers has also intensified in a market in which all companies are having difficulty hiring.

Enlist again or leave the service

The annual recruitment target fluctuates as serving soldiers decide whether to re-enlist or leave military service.

In the past two years, when the pandemic raged,

, easing the pressure to recruit more people.

The 2021 recruitment target was 57,500, and this year it will be similar, Vereen said.

Given the high level of demand for candidates,

50,000 bonus.

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Getting it will depend on when they decide to enlist, whether they already have critical skills, and whether they choose air or

positions .

Careers such as Missile Defense Crewman, Special Forces, Signal Intelligence, and Fire Control Specialists, who coordinate weapons operations on the battlefield, typically receive the maximum bonuses.

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Other key positions are infantry, intelligence analyst, combat medicine specialist, military police, combat engineer, among others.

depending on the places available in the training process and other needs of the service.

A competitive market

"We are in a competitive market," Vereen said, "how we incentivize is absolutely essential in trying to get someone to come and join the Army."

Sergeant First Class Mary James has been working as a recruiter in Ohio since November 2020 and said that when COVID-19 was on the rise and there were no vaccines, it was a challenge to get soldiers Now, she added, it has improved and with the bonuses it will plus.

"Money isn't always the first

thing you talk about, but it comes into play," said James, who has been in the Army for 15 years.

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"It will be exciting to see what it pays. I think this puts us at some of the highest levels of the competition," he added.

James explained that the money can help her meet her recruiting goal, as the Army goes into what it calls the

months , February through May, when recruiting hits a bare minimum.

The sergeant also said

, leaving home and what career can get people moving from one place to another every few years.

Vereen, for his part, said the Army is working to better address those kinds of concerns.