Maritime Awards Society of Canada

‘Hard-sell’ navy targets lagging military profile
Ottawa Citizen, 14 October 2009

Chief of Maritime Staff Vice-Admiral McFadden has said that the Navy has reached bottom in terms of its recruiting and retention problems, and that he is cautiously optimistic that new initiatives will replenish thinning ranks.  The Navy currently has 7,900 full-time and 3,345 reservist personnel, though it faces a shortfall of around 1,000 full-time sailors by 2011.  Reasons cited for this looming gap include recruiting centres’ focus on the Army because of the mission in Afghanistan, attrition rates higher than the other two military branches, and a lack of awareness of the Navy, particularly in the provinces of Quebec and Ontario.  New recruiting incentives to address the problem include subsidized education, which may have accounted for a recruiting increase in September, though it is too early to tell if such momentum can be sustained.  Other Western navies face similar problems to the Canadian Navy’s; the Royal Australian Navy has insufficient numbers to man its six Collins-class submarines, while many existing submariners are counting the days until their term of service expires.

(Courtesy “Daily Intelligence Brief”. World Naval Edition, October 21 2009. Office of the Asia-Pacific Advisor, Maritime Forces Pacific, Canadian Navy)