The New York Adjutant General Announces Guard Reached Recruiting Goal

LATHAM, UNITED STATES

12.11.2008

Courtesy Story

New York National Guard

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From the New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs

LATHAM, NY -- The New York Army National Guard has recruited and retained enough Soldiers to meet 100 percent of its authorized strength.

Of the 10,481 Soldiers the New York Army National Army National Guard is authorized the Guard now has a strength of 10,491.

Maintaining a fully-manned force is essential if the New York National Guards is to meet its federal mission to provide trained units and soldiers for missions in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Balkans, and other locations around the world,. These Citizen Soldiers also carry out vital state missions, providing forces for homeland security missions and responding to state emergencies.

"Meeting the 100 percent strength goal shows the people of New York that its Army National Guard is fully ready and mission capable," said Major General Joseph Taluto, the Adjutant General and commander of the New York Army National Guard.

Maintaining strength is especially important because if New York's National Guard cannot maintain their forces at acceptable levels of fill unit force structure will be moved, Taluto explained. If force structure leaves New York the there will be fewer people and less equipment -trucks, humvees, and helicopters-that the people of the state rely upon, he said.

A robust National Guard is also an economic benefit to New York. In 2008 the New York Army and Air National Guard injected $717 million into the New York economy in salaries, contracts, construction work, and educational benefits.

"New York has a well-balanced Army National Guard which can respond to an array of emergencies with helicopter units, an engineer battalion, infantry units, medical units, and transportation and military police units," Taluto added.

This is the first time since the Vietnam War era that the New York Army National Guard has been at 100 percent strength. This is due to a combination of aggressive recruiting; retaining our combat veterans, the restructuring of the New York Army National Guard's old Cold War organization and the federal mission the Army National Guard has today.

"None of this would have been possible without the support of Governor David Paterson," Taluto said. "Governor Paterson has strongly backed the New York National Guard and has worked hard to personally ensure that the needs of our soldiers and their families are met by state agencies."

"At Governor Paterson's direction the Division of Veterans Affairs, the Office of Mental Health, and the State University of New York have focused on supporting our Guard veterans and all veterans," Taluto added.

Recruiting Soldiers has always been a key mission for National Guard Soldiers and commanders. Unlike their Active Army counterparts, National Guard commanders are responsible for recruiting their own Soldiers. While the state maintains a professional force of recruiters to aid those commanders, the Guard has always been a community-based force.

The New York Army National Guard hit is lowest strength ever of 8,984 Soldiers in April of 2006. The strength of the Guard declined from 11,519 in 2001 due to a confluence of events.

As National Guard units were mobilized for service in Iraq and Afghanistan, older, longer-serving Soldiers who could not meet the physical requirements for deployment left. At the same time leaders across the National Guard were focused on preparing units for deployment in 2003, 2004 and 2005 and the focus on recruiting was lost. Strength dropped.

When he took charge of the National Guard in 2006, Taluto made recruiting new Soldiers and retaining veterans a priority. He went to the National Guard Bureau and argued against plans to move force structure from New York to other states. He set a goal of maintaining a 10,000-strong Army National Guard and convinced Guard leaders in the Pentagon to give him a chance to make that goal.

Since then the New York Army National Guard has recruited 7,024 Soldiers while 5,879 left the force through retirements and the separation of Soldiers who elected to end their service before reaching 20 years.

New York Army National Guard attrition rates are relatively low. More than 85 percent of Soldiers who are able to stay in the New York National Guard do so. The national retention rate is about 82 percent.

Incentives to remain in the Guard include improve Family Assistance Programs that helps Soldier families when Soldiers are deployed and here at home, new and improved equipment, a program to upgrade existing armories and build new ones, reenlistment bonuses, education programs, and meaningful state and national missions.

The New York Army National Guard increased the size of its full-time recruiting force and put some of its best officers and noncommissioned officers in those jobs to meet this goal.

At the same time, the National Guard embarked on a National recruiting effort in which Soldiers enlisting in the Guard can earn bonuses of up to $20,000 depending on their military occupation. Guard Soldiers can also access federal tuition benefits and New York State provides tuition assistance to Guard Soldiers attending SUNY or CUNY.

"There are many powerful incentives for a young man or woman to join the National Guard," Taluto said. "National Guard Soldiers can serve their state and nation while living in their home communities and attending college or working in their careers," he added.

While the Guard has been incentivized as never before, people still join out of a sense of patriotism and to serve their state and country, Taluto emphasized.

"The New York National Guard was successfully recruiting Soldiers before the economy took a downturn," Taluto said.

The National Guard's G-RAP program, or Guard Recruiting Assistance Program, under which current Soldiers can earn $2,000 for recruiting new Soldiers, also provides an incentive for Soldiers to work with recruiters. New York has paid $3.3 million in G-Rap money to Soldier/Recruiters since 2006.

In 2005 the New York Army National Guard also transformed itself to a modular force, more readily deployed in today's wars, by eliminating force structure put in place to during the Cold War era. This reduction in overall force is another reason the New York Army National Guard is at 100 percent strength.

The National Guard eliminated an armored combat brigade which consisted of two tank battalions and an infantry battalion, and gave those Soldiers new assignments in the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team which is just finishing a tour of duty in Afghanistan. The New York Army National Guard today consists of the 27th BCT, the 42nd Combat Aviation Brigade, the 42nd Infantry Division headquarters, and critical support elements, like transportation units, logistics units, and MP battalions in the 53rd Troop Command.

During the Cold War era the National Guard considered units that were at 80 percent strength. In the large mobilization those empty positions would be filled by Active Army Soldiers and individual reservists. The National Guard was a Strategic Reserve force which was not expected to be ready to fight at all times.

Today the Army employs the National Guard as an operational reserve, rotating units in and out of combat zones on a regular basis for nine to 10 month deployments. Low-strength units are no longer acceptable in this environment. It is more desirable to have fewer units that are fully manned, than a larger force structure that is partially manned.

"The National Guard today is fully integrated into peacekeeping and warfight missions going on worldwide," Taluto said.

Facts about New York Army National Guard Recruiting/Retention:
Strength: Assigned versus Authorized:
- FY 2006: Assigned: 9,093; Authorized: 10,047
- FY 2007: Assigned 9,622; Authorized: 10,363
- FY 2008: Assigned 10,276; Authorized: 10,464
- To Date: Assigned 10,491; Authorized : 10,481*
* Authorized End Strength varies based on annual changes to Army unit design.

Soldiers Recruited versus losses:
Year Recruits Losses
-FY 2006: 1,969 2,096
-FY 2007: 2,285 1,827
-FY 2008: 2,325 1,728
-FY 2009: 445 228

Bonus Payment to New Army National Guard Soldiers:
-FY 2006: 3,893 payments totaling $1,469,305
-FY 2007: 4,566 payments totaling $1,905,718
-FY 2008: 3,567 payments totaling $2,238,011

Federal Tuition Assistance to New York Army National Guard Soldiers:*
-FY2006: 981 Payments totaling $7,898,955
-FY 2007: 1, 1305 payments totaling $14,213,254
-FY 2008: 1,502 payments totaling $15,943,813

*Soldiers can receive more than one payment based on semesters and quarters attended
State Tuition Assistance to New York Army National Guard Soldiers*

-FY 2006: 1,386 payments totaling $1,343,000
-FY 2007: 1,199 payments totaling $1,534,000
-FY 2008: 1,175 payments totaling $1,400,000 (estimated)
*Payments per semester

Recruit Demographics:
Ethnicity:
-White: 61 Percent
-African-American: 19 Percent
-Hispanic: 17 Percent
-Asian: 2 Percent
-Other: less than 1 Percent

Gender:
-Male: 84 percent
-Female: 16 Percent

Age:
-17-20: 36 percent
-21-25: 31 percent
-26-30: 15 percent
-31-35: 8 percent
36+ : 10 percent

Some Monthly Pay Rate:
Rank Pay (Weekend)
Private, $201.32
Sergeant $299.64
Sgt 1st Class $421.60
1st Lieutenant $514.92

Top Five Reasons Guard Soldiers Stay:
-Pride in Being a Guard Member
-Opportunity to Serve Country
-Retirement Benefits
-Military Culture/Lifestyle
-Educational Benefits