It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone during a bad economy, but Pentagon officials this afternoon announced new, positive recruiting numbers for May. Each of the active-duty services has met or exceeded their monthly goal every month since the start of the fiscal year (October 2008). Here are the figures for May alone:
| Marine Corps | 142 percent of goal | 2,146 new recruits |
| Army | 104 percent of goal | 4,044 new recruits |
| Navy | 100 percent of goal | 2,542 new recruits |
| Air Force | 100 percent of goal | 2,289 new recruits |
Retention isn't hurting either:
"Retention continues to be very strong as all four active component services met or exceeded their May retention goals. The Marine Corps has met its year-end first and subsequent goals and Army has met its year-end initial, mid-career and career goals."
The Marine Corps is actually slated to end the year about 2,000 people above their stated end strength of 202,000, a problem unheard of just a few years ago when recruiting was at its lowest point. But aggressive recruiting and robust bonuses pushed the services through their lean times, and a poor job market and fewer deaths in Iraq have coupled to erase those problems over the last two years.
The Marine Corps lead on the reserves side as well, with numbers that must have service officials smiling:
| Marine Corps Reserve | 212 percent of goal | 1,196 new recruits |
| Air Force Reserve | 107 percent of goal | 770 new recruits |
| Navy Reserve | 100 percent of goal | 574 new recruits |
| Army Reserve | 96 percent of goal | 3,178 new recruits |
| Air National Guard | 95 percent of goal | 766 new recruits |
| Army National Guard | 83 percent of goal | 3,026 new recruits |
What about you? Have you changed your plans to leave the service early, or signed up for the reserves as concerns about the economy have risen?
