Soldier surplus allows Guard to make cuts

By Tom Vanden Brook

WASHINGTON — As unemployment soars, a combination of cash incentives and aggressive recruiting has left the Army National Guard with a surplus of soldiers, and now it plans to trim its force, according to government documents and interviews with Guard officials.

As recently as 2005, the National Guard fell 20 percent short of its recruitment goal and was 20,000 soldiers shy of its overall target of 350,000, leading its commander to call it a “hollow” force. The bonuses and relaxed standards for recruits helped fill the Guard’s ranks to 366,880 soldiers, beyond the 358,200 authorized by Congress.

The Guard has already cut some bonuses, stopped accepting convicted felons on special waivers and lowered the maximum age for recruits.

The Guard stopped issuing felony waivers in 2007 in an attempt to increase the quality of its recruits, according to the Government Accountability Office. The maximum enlistment age has been reduced from 42 to 35, said Grant Zachary, deputy chief of the Army National Guard’s strength maintenance division.

”We’ve taken all kinds of measures in order to increase the quality of the force,” Zachary said.

The Army National Guard began to rebuild in late 2005. Bonuses and more recruiters stemmed the decline, said Lt. Col. Ronald Walls, chief of the Guard’s strength maintenance division.

Soldiers in critically needed specialties, such as military police, truck drivers and intelligence analysts, were eligible for $20,000 bonuses, twice the former rate.

The number of full-time recruiters jumped to 5,100 from 2,700. Another successful program pays contractors $1,000 for each recruit who signs up for the Army National Guard.

Along with lower bonuses, the Guard is trimming other incentives. Budget documents released Thursday show the Pentagon proposes reducing education benefits to Army National Guard members from $285 million in 2009 to $201 million in 2010.

National Guard soldiers have a dual mission: They respond to emergencies in the states and serve abroad, including in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. The eight-year obligation often includes a one-year combat tour, Zachary said.

The poor economy is prompting more young people to consider the National Guard, said James Martin, a retired Army colonel and expert on military culture at Bryn Mawr College in Bryn Mawr, Pa. Many view it as a solid part-time job that can help pay for college or provide job training, he said.

Jordan O’Brien, 18, of Nora, Ind., joined the Guard in April to help pay his tuition at Ball State University. O’Brien hopes for a $10,000 signing bonus but said he’s disappointed that’s down from the $20,000 he first discussed with a recruiter.

“This will help my parents out by not having to pay for my school, especially the way the economy is going right now,” O’Brien said.