Down 2,500 Recruits, Coast Guard Overhauls Talent Management

[Timber Rattler]

https://news.usni.org/2024/04/16/down-2500-recruits-coast-guard-overhauls-talent-management?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3EmavbVcE9BS2tW2RhqV24OXtBwaPT7oCww8ecSp6MzauvzpXPU3RfcoU_aem_ATvoCi61Qtggn7V8Kozg3zERN3mVWQ2buwavQ8pgMXvaECVUbQnAl59XENtlwuN8s0Mi7DXSr56-5DIatSWrDB-k

A comprehensive talent realignment initiative that sought to address personnel shortages in the Coast Guard saved about 1,500 billets, a top personnel officer said.

The Coast Guard was short 2,500 billets, Rear Adm. Russell Dash, commander of the personnel service center, told the audience last week at Sea Air Space 2024.

A lack of personnel, stemming from recruiting challenges, is one of the more immediate crises facing the sea service. Dash also leads the incident management team created to focus on recruiting.

The Coast Guard is focusing on three lines of effort for recruiting, which include trying to raise awareness and interest in serving and making the process easier.

Currently, any potential recruit is handed a clipboard with 82 pages in order to enlist, Dash said. Instead, the service is working on a a mobile app.

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One idea the Coast Guard is trying is using retirees to encourage people to enlist. Retirees who get someone to enlist are rewarded with a $1,000 check, Dash said. The service is also in the process of opening a junior reserve officer training corps program in each of the nine Coast Guard districts, he said.

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That means opening up new recruiting stations and billets, Thomas said. It also means the Coast Guard cannot be as picky with candidates. Before, the service could focus recruiting on minority groups to ensure a more diverse force. Now, with the recruiting shortages, the service must readjust its efforts to get as many new coasties as possible.

That does not mean the Coast Guard is lowering its standards, Thomas said. Instead, it’s opening more doors for potential candidates.

Beyond competition with the other services and industry, the Coast Guard is feeling the effects of high levels of distrust in the military. People actively discourage young Americans from enlisting, Thomas said.

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