The Transformation of Personnel Policies

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Notes

1 This article is adapted from the introductory chapter by Cindy Williams in the book edited by the authors, Curtis Gilroy and Cindy Williams, Service to Country: Personnel Policy and the Transformation of Western Militaries (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press 2006). Cindy Williams is grateful to the German Marshall Fund of the United States for hosting her at its Transatlantic Center in Brussels, Belgium during the 2002–2003 academic year, and for sponsoring and hosting a 2003 roundtable on military personnel policies in NATO countries, which provided substantial background information for this article. She also wishes to thank the Smith Richardson Foundation for the generous support of her work on US military pay and personnel policy and the Ford Foundation and the Proteus Fund for their support of related work.

2 European Court of Justice, Decision in Case C‐285/98, Tanja Kreil v Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 11 Jan. 2000.

3 Euromil, an umbrella organization for associations representing people in Europe’s militaries, which had a hand in bringing the case for women to the European Court, is working to bring other personnel policies before national and European courts. See ⟨http://www.euromil.org⟩.

4 The Rt. Hon. Baroness Dean of Thornton‐le‐Fylde (Chairman), Armed Forces Pay Review Body Thirty‐First Report (Norwich: The Stationery Office (TSO) 2002) pp.2–3. The analysis noted that any comparison of pay and benefits across countries is made difficult by the fact that compensation structures vary widely; for example, one country might provide lower basic pay but larger allowances or special pays, or provide more in kind but less in cash. The study found, however, that overall UK military remuneration is generally competitive with or better than pay in the other countries examined.

5 The US military’s authorized active‐duty end strength for 2005 was about 1.42 million troops. In Feb. 2006, both the Navy and the Air Force announced plans to reduce troop levels during the coming years.

6 Cindy Williams, ‘From Conscripts to Volunteers: NATO’s Transitions to All‐Volunteer Forces’, Naval War College Review 58/1 (Winter 2005) pp.35–62.

7 Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the House of Commons, April 2002, Chapter 5, ‘National Defence – Recruitment and Retention of Military Personnel’. In 1996, fewer than one‐third of the members of Canada’s military were under 30, compared with nearly 60 percent in 1986. Susan Truscott and Kate Dupre, Directorate of Human Resource Research and Analysis, Dept. of National Defence, Canada, ‘Organizational, Social and Demographic Change in the Canadian Forces’, Paper AB‐37, 1998 Conference of the International Military Testing Association.

8 Philip Shishkin, ‘How Europe’s Armies Let Their Guard Down’, Wall Street Journal, 13 Feb. 2003.

9 Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the House of Commons (note 7) p.12.

10 Gen. Gordon Sullivan in Curtis L. Gilroy, ‘Civil‐Military Operations and the Military Mission: Differences between Military and Influential Elites’, in Don Snider and Miranda Carlton‐Carew (eds.), U.S. Civil‐Military Relations: In Crisis or Transition? (Washington DC: Center for Strategic and International Studies 1995) p.33.

11 For example, France’s limited contribution to the 1991 Persian Gulf War is often blamed on its legal prohibition against the deployment abroad of conscripts. Of some 250,000 active‐duty troops, France was able to put together an expeditionary force of only 15,000. See George A. Bloch, ‘French Military Reform: Lessons for America’s Army?’, Parameters 30/2 (Summer 2000) p.34.

12 ‘No, We Ain’t Dead Yet’, interview with NATO Secretary‐General George Robertson, Newsweek, 20 May 2002; NATO Secretary‐General George Robertson, ‘The Role of NATO in the Twenty‐First Century’, Speech at the Welt am Sonntag Forum, 3 Nov. 2003 ⟨http://www.nato.int/docu/speech/2003/s031103a.htm⟩; R. Nicholas Burns, US Ambassador to NATO, ‘Launching NATO’s Transformation at Prague’, Manfred Woerner Memorial Lecture at Konrad‐Adenauer Stiftung, Berlin, 30 Oct. 2002, ⟨nato.usmission.gov/ambassador/2002/s021030a.htm⟩.

13 The US Dept. of Defense has launched initiatives to enhance awareness and appreciation of different cultures and to require more officers and enlisted members to learn a foreign language – particularly strategically important languages such as Arabic and Chinese. See, for example, Scott Jaschik, ‘Millions for “Strategic” Languages’, Inside Higher Education, 4 Jan. 2006, p.1.

14 The European response to terrorism took on a new urgency immediately following the tragic attacks in Madrid on 11 March 2004. See European Council, ‘Declaration on Combating Terrorism’ (Brussels, 25 March 2004); and ‘EU Plan of Action on Combating Terrorism – Update’ (Brussels, 14 Dec. 2004), both at ⟨ue.eu.int/showPage.asp?id=631&lang=en&mode=g⟩. In addition, see Javier Solana, Secretary‐General of the Council of the European Union and High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, ‘A Secure Europe in a Better World: European Security Strategy’ (Brussels, 12 Dec. 2003); and ‘Prague Summit Declaration issued by the Heads of State and Government participating in the Meeting of the North Atlantic Council on 21 Nov. 2002’, NATO Press Release (2002) 127, 21 Nov. 2002 ⟨http://www.nato.int/docu/pr/2002/p02‐127e.htm⟩.

15 Donald H. Rumsfeld, Report of the Quadrennial Defense Review (Washington DC: DoD Feb. 2006).

16 Owen R. Cote Jr, ‘The Personnel Needs of the Future Force’, in Cindy Williams, Filling the Ranks: Transforming the U.S. Military Personnel System (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press 2004) pp.55–68.

17 Gen. Harald Kujat, ‘The Transformation of NATO’s Military Forces and its Link with U.S. Transformation’, speech at SACLANT’s ‘OPEN ROAD’, Norfolk, VA, 21 Jan. 2003.

18 Cote (note 16).

19 Mark Thomson, A Trillion Dollars and Counting: Paying for Defence to 2050 (Barton, ACT: Australian Strategic Policy Institute March 2004) pp.28–32.

20 Rickard Sandell, ‘Coping with Demography in NATO Europe: Military Recruitment in Times of Population Decline’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1) pp.65–96.

21 Ibid.

22 Ibid.

23 Ibid.

24 Bernard Rostker and Curtis Gilroy, ‘The Transition to an All‐Volunteer Force: The US Experience’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

25 Dave Moniz, ‘Army Misses Recruiting Goal’, USA Today, 3 March 2005, p.9.

26 Mark Bannerman, ‘Military struggling to meet recruitment targets’, TV Program Transcript, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2 March 2006; Thomson (note 19) pp.28–32.

27 Bernhard Fleckenstein, ‘Germany: Forerunner of a Postnational Military?’ in Charles C. Moskos, John Allen Williams, and David R. Segal, The Postmodern Military (New York: OUP 2000) pp.88–9.

28 Vaidotas Urbelis, ‘Impact of NATO Membership on Military Service in the Baltic States’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

29 See ‘Why Do We Need Conscription?’ in ‘The History of Compulsory Military Service’, website of the German Defense Ministry, ⟨eng.bmvg.de/bundeswehr/wehrpflicht/grundlagen/wehrdienst_geschichte_01.php⟩.

30 In European countries, the right to perform alternative service is generally limited to conscientious objectors. See Dick Marty, Rapporteur, Report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, ‘Exercise of the right of conscientious objection to military service in Council of Europe member states’, European Council Doc. 8809, revised 4 May 2001. The Council of Europe has recognized a right of conscientious objection since 1967, although the national laws of some of its member states do not codify any such right. The Assembly of the European Committee of Ministers recommended strengthening the right even in member countries whose laws already recognize a right of conscientious objection; see Council of Europe Recommendation 1518, ‘Text adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of the Assembly’, 23 May 2001.

31 Increasing levels of conscientious objection and other means of draft avoidance were fueled by a variety of factors, including policy changes that made it easier for young men to claim conscientious‐objector status, a weakening of the social stigma associated with not serving in the military, and reduced public support for conscription. Military downsizing also played a role: as militaries shrank, fewer people were called up for military service each year, and the requirement to serve appeared increasingly unfair to those who were called up. See Christopher Jehn and Zachary Selden, ‘The End of Conscription in Europe?’ Contemporary Economic Policy 20/2 (April 2002) pp.93–100; Williams (note 6); Cindy Williams, ‘Draft Lessons From Europe’, Washington Post, 5 Oct. 2004, p.A25.

32 Gerhard Kümmel, ‘An All‐Volunteer Force in Disguise: On the Transformation of the Armed Forces in Germany’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

33 David R. Sands, ‘Even Military Experts Consider Draft Antiquated’, Insight on the News, 12 Feb. 2001.

34 In Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine, an average of only 10 to 20 percent of those subject to conscription actually enlisted for service as of 2001; see Dick Marty, Rapporteur, Report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, ‘Exercise of the right of conscientious objection to military service in Council of Europe member states’, European Council Doc. 8809 revised, 4 May 2001. See also Mel Huang, ‘So Far So Smooth: Interview with Brigadier General Jonas A. Kronkaitis’, Central Europe Review 2/27 (10 July 2000).

35 For analysis of how a country’s culture may affect women’s participation in the military, see Mady W. Segal, ‘Women’s Military Roles Cross‐Nationally: Past, Present, and Future’, Gender & Society 9 (Dec. 1995) pp.757–75; Darlene Iskra, Stephen Trainor, Marcia Leithauser, and Mady W. Segal, ‘Women’s Participation in Armed Forces Cross‐Nationally: Expanding Segal’s Model’, Current Sociology 50/5 (Sept. 2002) pp.771–98; Gerhard Kümmel, ‘When Boy Meets Girl: The “Feminization” of the Military: An Introduction Also to be Read as a Postscript’, Current Sociology 50/5 (Sept. 2002) pp.615–33; Christopher Dandeker and Mady Segal, ‘Gender Integration in Armed Forces: Recent Policy Developments in the United Kingdom’, Armed Forces & Society 23/3 (Fall 1996) pp.29–47. Also of interest is ‘Gender Integration in the Armed Forces: A Cross National Comparison of Policies and Practices in NATO Countries’, a 2002 working paper by Helena Carreiras ⟨http://www.nato.int/ims/2002/cwinf2002/cwinf-02⟩.

36 For more detailed accounts of the factors affecting decisions to halt conscription, see Jehn and Selden (note 31); and Williams (note 6).

37 For the view that use of conscripts diverts funds from modernizing military equipment and thus contributes to the capabilities gap between the United States and Europe, see Richard L. Russell, ‘NATO’s European Members: Partners or Dependents?’ Naval War College Review 56/1 (Winter 2003) pp.30–40; David S. Yost, ‘The NATO Capabilities Gap and the European Union’, Survival 42/4 (Winter 2000–01) pp.100–1; Elinor Sloan, ‘Military Matters: Speeding Deployment’, NATO Review 49/1 (Spring 2001) pp.30–3; Philip Shishkin, ‘How Europe’s Armies Let Their Guard Down’, Wall Street Journal, 13 Feb. 2003. Nicholas Burns, the former US Ambassador to NATO, has argued that ‘even without spending more money, many allies could use their existing defense Euros more wisely by providing professional military units … rather than retaining static conscript forces’. Burns (note 12). The report of the Weizsäcker Commission to the German federal government, ‘Common Security and the Future of the Bundeswehr’, 23 May 2000, provides explicit estimates of personnel and infrastructure savings that would accrue from reducing the number of conscripts in the German forces.

38 The first decade of an all‐volunteer force can be difficult. As Figure 3 reveals, militaries in that transition period may be the hardest‐hit in terms of modernization.

39 John Warner and Sebastian Negrusa, ‘The Economic Case for All‐Volunteer Forces’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

40 Hannu Herranen, ‘General Conscription and Wartime Reserve in Finland’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

41 The point is made in several chapters of Gilroy and Williams (note 1): Bertel Heurlin, ‘The New Danish Model: Limited Conscription and Deployable Professionals’; Hannu Herranen, ‘General Conscription and Wartime Reserve in Finland’; Gerhard Kümmel, ‘An All‐Volunteer Force in Disguise’; and Chris Donnelly, ‘Sustaining an Effective Reserve: Implications of the New Security Environment for Reserve Forces’.

42 See Bernard Rostker and Curtis Gilroy, ‘The Transition to an All‐Volunteer Force: The US Experience’ in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

43 For country‐by‐country discussions of the changing roles and numbers of women in NATO’s forces, see NATO Committee on Women in the NATO Forces, Year‐In‐Review 2004, ⟨http://www.nato.int/ims/2004/win/03-index.htm⟩. For a summary table depicting the representation of women in NATO’s forces between 2001 and 2004, see the website of the Committee at ⟨http://www.nato.int/issues/women_nato/index.html⟩.

44 Thomson (note 19).

45 US Dept. of Defense, Population Representation in the Military Services 2004, Table 3.5 <http://new.humrro.org/poprep04/enlisted_force/gender.html⟩ and Table 4.8 ⟨http://new.humrro.org/poprep04/officers/gender.html⟩.

46 Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands, ‘Summary of the Defence White Paper 2000’, 17 July 2001, p. 13.

47 James C. McKinley Jr, ‘Mexican Pride and Death in US Service’, New York Times, 22 March 2005.

48 Juan Lopez Diaz, ‘The All‐Volunteer Spanish Armed Forces’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1); BBC News, ‘Spain’s army fills gaps from abroad’, 19 June 2001 ⟨news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/Europe/1397221.stm⟩.

49 Catherine Miller, BBC News Online, ‘The death of conscription’, 29 June 2001, ⟨news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1414033.stm⟩.

50 George Cahlink, ‘Fewer Hands on Deck’, Government Executive Magazine, 1 June 2004.

51 Williams (note 6). As of early 2006, the jewelry question is still pending.

52 Williams (note 6).

53 Mark Bannerman, ‘Military struggling to meet recruitment targets’, TV Program Transcript, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2 March 2006; Thomson (note 19) pp.28–32.

54 Gilroy and Rostker (note 42) p.254.

55 Dept. of National Defence, Canada, Backgrounder, ‘Recommended Changes to Canadian Forces Terms of Service’, BG‐01.016, 27 June 2001, ⟨http://www.dnd.ca/eng/archive/june01/27terms_b_e.htm⟩.

56 ‘Personnel Branch in Detail’, summary of personnel policies by the New Zealand Defence Force, as of 29 March 2006 ⟨http://www.nzdf.mil.nz/personnel-records/personnel-branch.htm⟩.

57 Williams (note 6).

58 Mihaela Matei, ‘Romania’s Transition to an All‐Volunteer Force: Managerial Challenges and Opportunities’ in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

59 Williams, ‘Introduction’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

60 Ibid.; ‘Personnel Branch in Detail’, summary of personnel policies by the New Zealand Defence Force, as of 29 March 2006 ⟨http://www.nzdf.mil.nz/personnel-records/personnel-branch.htm⟩.

61 Directorate of Pay Policy and Development, Canadian National Defence, ‘Regular Force Non‐Commissioned Members (NCM) Rates’, 18 Feb. 2005, ⟨http://www.forces.gc.ca/dgcb/dppd/pay/engraph/NCMRegFPayRate_e.asp?sidesection=3&sidecat=28⟩.

62 Commonwealth of Australia, Review of Australian Defence Force Remuneration (The Nunn Panel Review 2001) p.45; Commonwealth of Australia, ‘Twentieth Report of the Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal’, 21 Oct. 2005, ⟨http://www.dfrt.gov.au/Annual%20Report/TwentiethReport200405/Twentieth%20Report%202004%20to%202005.htm⟩.

63 US Congressional Budget Office, Budget Options (Feb. 2005) p.43.

64 Donald J. Cymrot and Michael L. Hansen, ‘Overhauling Enlisted Careers and Compensation’, in Cindy Williams (ed.), Filling the Ranks: Transforming the U.S. Military Personnel System (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press 2004) pp.119–43; and Bernard Rostker, ‘Changing the Officer Personnel System’, ibid. pp.145–66.

65 Commonwealth of Australia, The Military Superannuation and Benefits Board of Trustees, ‘Military Super: A Summary of the Military Superannuation and Benefits Scheme’, Dec. 2001; Canadian Dept. of National Defence, ‘Your Pension Plan and Release Pay Benefits’, 2002.

66 Deborah Clay‐Mendez, ‘Cash and In‐Kind Compensation Policies for a Volunteer Force: The US Experience’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

67 Williams (note 6).

68 Domenico Villani, ‘Recruitment in a Period of Transformation: The Italian Experience’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 6).

69 Juan Lopez Diaz, ‘The All‐Volunteer Spanish Armed Forces’, in Gilroy and Williams (note 1).

70 Williams (note 6).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Cindy Williams

Cindy Williams, a principal research scientist, Security Studies Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Curtis Gilroy, director of accession policy, Office of the US Secretary of Defense.