The US Army exceeded its July recruiting goal, aided by 20,000-dollar sign-up bonuses offered after two straight months of enlistment shortfalls, officials said Friday. All other active-duty services met or surpassed their monthly recruiting targets in July.
The army signed up 9,972 new recruits in July, about two percent above its goal of 9,750, according to Pentagon statistics. Shortfalls in May and June raised concerns about meeting the army's annual goal of 80,000 recruits with youths and their parents leery of wartime military service.
The army responded by offering 20,000-dollar bonuses if recruits signed up starting July 25 and shipped out to boot camp within a month and before September 30, said Julia Bobick, a spokeswoman at the army's recruiting command at Fort Knox, Kentucky.
The signing bonus and other incentives can add up to a maximum 40,000 dollars for new soldiers. "It was introduced as a way to get as many folks shipped and into training as we can this fiscal year to try to ensure that we do meet our mission," she said. The army said it is now 957 recruits ahead of its pace to meet an annual goal of 80,000 recruits.