CV NEWS FEED // A newly released survey of military families found that less than one-third recommend joining the service.
The new numbers mark a precipitous decline from seven years earlier, when a majority of service members polled recommended enlisting in the military.
Military.com reported Monday that according to a survey Blue Star Families conducted last year, the “likelihood of active-duty families recommending military service dropped from 55% in 2016 to just 32% in 2023.”
The survey showed that the stunning 23-point drop can be attributed to several factors. Military.com noted that the families who did not recommend service “cit[ed] poor job opportunities for spouses, poor mental and physical health care services, and housing concerns.”
“Active-duty troops, as well as National Guard and reserve family members, all cited time spent away from their families as their top issue with the military,” Military.com added.
“Nearly half of respondents were concerned with spousal employment, 38% with time spent away from family, 37% with pay, and 36% and 33% concerned about housing and children’s education, respectively,” Military.com’s report continued:
According to the Blue Star survey, 73% of active duty-affiliated respondents were paying more than $200 a month out-of-pocket for civilian housing options, and 48% of active-duty families noted they had financial stress stemming from general housing costs.
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The findings within the Blue Star Families survey heavily support the suggestion that service members cannot keep up with increasing inflation, food, housing and health care costs. Of its active-duty respondents, one in six reported food insecurity, the survey showed. Among enlisted members, reported food insecurity was even higher, suffered by one in four families, according to the survey.
>> REPORTS: SIGNIFICANTLY FEWER WHITE PEOPLE JOINED U.S. ARMY IN 2023 <<
Per its website, Blue Star Families “was founded by military spouses in 2009 to empower these families to thrive as they serve.”
“Our groundbreaking research is raising the nation’s awareness of the unique challenges of military family life,” the website continues. “With the help of neighbors across the country, we are overcoming the isolation and alienation of frequent moves, deployments, and reduced support from the government.”
The organization has a network of about 275,000 members.
The shocking Blue Star Families survey is just the latest example of the military’s continuing recruitment woes.
Last December, The Daily Signal in December reported that multiple branches were experiencing “staffing concerns.”
“[T]he Army, Air Force, and Navy—missed their recruiting targets for 2023,” continued the Signal’s report. “The Army recruited 55,000 but its goal was 65,000, so it fell short by 10,000 active-duty soldiers.”
>> POLL: ALMOST 3 OUT OF 4 VETS SAY MILITARY IS TOO WOKE <<
CatholicVote reported in January:
The Army’s recent struggles to bolster its ranks can be further illustrated by a late December Daily Signal report. The report showed that the vast majority of Army soldiers discharged over the branch’s COVID shot mandate decided not to rejoin the service after the mandate was lifted.
CatholicVote reported on December 21 that, per The Daily Signal, “only 57 – 3% – of the 1,903 Army service members who were forcibly removed for their decisions to not get a COVID shot have since reenlisted.”
Also in December, Rep. Jim Banks, R-IN, read the results of a poll by the American Principles Project (APP) at a House Armed Services Committee hearing.
The congressman suggested that some military leaders’ recent embrace of controversial left-wing political causes is a reason for low recruitment numbers.
“[A] quarter of the veterans would tell a young person not to enlist,” Banks stated during the hearing. “And when those veterans were asked to explain why, in their own words, the most common reason was politics.”
Banks is a Navy Reserve officer and Afghanistan veteran. He is currently running for the U.S. Senate.
