National Post
2005.01.14
Undermanned military makes it hard to enlist: 'Spinning out of control'
OTTAWA - The Canadian Forces continues to frustrate prospective recruits, unable to efficiently process even a third of new applications, the military ombudsman says. "The recruiting centres are spinning out of control trying to pretend there is not an issue," ombudsman Marin said yesterday. "The top levels of the chain of command are saying, as well as the Auditor-General ... there are fundamental problems." More than two-thirds of 156 complaints to the military ombudsman's office from recruits in recent months cited long delays in processing applications beyond the Forces' stated goal of clearing successful applicants within seven weeks, Mr. Marin said.
During last year's federal election campaign, Prime Minister Paul Martin promised 5,000 new full-time troops and 3,000 part-time reservists. But Mr. Marin says a preliminary investigation, launched after his annual report in September, shows the Forces continues to be burdened by major systemic recruiting problems.
Mr. Marin said the Forces was able to meet its seven-week target of processing applications in only 30% of the cases he examined, and that was only in cases where voluminous paperwork -- birth certificates, references, proof of education -- was near-perfect and there were no security clearance or health issues.
Mr. Marin said applicants interviewed by his office expressed fear their applications would be ignored or shuffled to the bottom of the pile if they complained.
Mr. Marin criticized recruiters for fostering a "chilling effect" that is forcing many applicants to keep their complaints private.
Mr. Marin's findings come on the eve of Mr. Martin's announcement of a new Chief of Defence staff, Lieutenant-General Rick Hillier. Lt.-Gen. Hillier is being fast-tracked into the new job and will be sworn in on Feb. 4, months ahead of when the current defence chief, General Ray Henault, had planned to step down.
Senior federal officials say Mr. Martin wants Lt.-Gen. Hillier on the job sooner so he can tackle the recruiting problem and shepherd the ongoing review of defence policy that is to be completed when Parliament resumes at the end of January.
Mr. Marin said the Forces could use the leadership in tackling its recruitment woes. He said he hoped Lt.-Gen. Hillier would be "candid and upfront and say there are issues here, and not only do I support an outside overseer, but I embrace it and any solutions you can put forward."
The Forces' second-in-command recently testified before a Senate committee that the military has not begun trying to recruit the new soldiers promised by Mr. Martin because it does not have the resources in its recruiting
offices. Vice-Admiral Ron Buck predicted it could take the military up to five years to recruit the new bodies but that the initiative is on hold until the government boosts defence spending.
This week, Finance Minister Ralph Goodale gave the strongest indication yet the Forces would receive an infusion of new cash in the upcoming federal budget.
Mr. Marin said he is receiving good co-operation from military officials and he hopes to issue a final report, with recommendations about how to improve recruiting, before he steps down from the job this spring.