Army recruitment of unemployed youth

[MistressoftheDarkSide]

Here pigeons, have a cat.

According to the Express and Mail, Liz Kendall thinks that going into the forces would be a good idea for unemployed youngsters. Surprised this has apparently flown under the MN radar. I wonder where this is all going, she mused, with wide eyed faux naivety.

I feel like your username is apt OP 🤣🫣

I see patterns.... 😉

The armed forces can be an opportunity to learn skills and have a good career for young people. Equally, there is a need to increase the size of our military due to the geopolitical position we’re now in.

It won’t suit everyone, but I don’t think there is anything wrong with promoting it as an option for those who might benefit.

Agree. Not for all, but amazing for some.

Labour are obviously starting to panic and float ideas like this because of Starmer's plan on peacekeepers for Ukraine.
Military would struggle to even put enough numbers forward in its current state.

All 3 services are losing more than they are recruiting.

I suppose if all else fails at least being cannon fodder gives one a sense of purpose.

The ppl that think sticking young men in the armed forces will solve societies problems are in my opinion idiots. Yes if a young person is fit and WANTS to do it great. But if not why would the armed forces want young ppl who aren't committed , what will it achieve if they get kicked out after a couple of weeks, waste to tax payers money.
Same old record played again and again.

The forces are an excellent choice of career. All sorts of amazing opportunities, training, qualifications....

If anyone want to be a nurse for example, join up and get paid a proper wage and they'll put you through your degree and the training. No debt.

Of course when I was actually a teen they told me to fuck off because of my bad knees and migraines 😂 and I wanted to be a Russian language and intelligence officer in the RAF. Shame for me, as I passed everything until the medical. Boooo.

Anyway, the Army have always targeted the disaffected youth and many have had fantastic careers as a result.

Not everyone who signs up is put on the front line, the military can offer great opportunities but maybe this is a thinly disguised effort at suggesting conscription

The phrase " cannon fodder" is such an outdated trope. That related to conscription to the front line where soldiers actually faced cannon. Warfare has changed a tad since then.

I guess it depends.
Not everyone is cut out for the military but equally I don't feel like serving members and veterans are treated well.
I wouldn't want my children joining.

Its a well known fact in the Forces that recruitment goes up when there's unemployment and goes down when there's lots of jobs available. Same with retention... People stick around longer when there's no other option.

Been the same for centuries. Its not new.

Agree, my father came from a disadvantaged background and had some social difficulties as a result but came into his own when he joined the military and gained qualifications, it can be a fantastic career for some. He and my mother travelled all over.

A good thing surely?

Interesting that Rishi Sunak floated the same sort of fever dream just as he bailed out of office. To be fair, yes, the army could be a good career choice for some, however, given the demographic being "encouraged" in the wake of the changes to benefits and the state of the world right now, I think we may be onto something.

Or in other words ….. MP says the unemployed could do with a job

Ds's boyfriend is a soldier, he joined when he was 16. They recruited from his school - didn't recruit at ds's (leafy suburb) school, which is telling. Ds's boyfriend is of mixed opinion (unsurprisingly), they have really helped quite a few kids gain some stability but he reckons he's one of the few who didn't grow up in a dysfunctional environment but they don't encourage you to apply for promotions or seeks them out because they have you by the short and curlies but he's ambitious so has pursued opportunities on his own. I think any job is better than no job - have experience of family members spending a year in their bedroom - that is the pits. And when he stays with us - ds's bedroom is absolutely spotless!

Do you object to the UK having armed forces then? We cannot have a defence without personnel to staff it.

There are lots of paths available through the forces- nursing, IT, mechanics. I can’t see what the objection is to promoting these a career option for those who want them.

Yeah, my Dad joined the navy at 17. He's a nuclear test veteran. He has plenty to say about modern warfare and the military, as he deals with the ongoing impact of purely coincidental yet very rare splenic lymphoma. Cannon fodder is a euphemism.

They are losing more than they are recruiting because of people like my son. Who chose his gcses and trained physically to join the army, passed the aptitude and physical testing then had his application declined because he had hayfever in childhood. Hayfever. They declared him medically unfit and he can't reapply ever again. He really wanted to make the military a career but it wasn't to be.
So if they want more unemployed people to join, they better unclench on the vast list of medical conditions applicants are currently rejected for.

With respect, you haven’t answered the question about whether you believe we should have a military.

Who is going to staff it if young people shouldn’t be recruited?

Yep since they outsourced recruitment it has been shit. People who actually want to do the job, having to wait months or years and being messed around so much that they just give up. It’s not that easy to ‘join up’!

Never mind how it is once you’re in…

No problem with additional recruiting but not conscription. Conscription means that a professional force spends a large amount of time babysitting wasters who don’t want to be there.

I have served.
I went in at 16, straight out of secondary school. I completed my GCSE’s in the June and started basic training the following January.
I’ll openly admit, I had pissed away my education (even though I was a more than capable student) and didn’t have many prospects outside of a minimum wage job in my hometown.
A pre-requisite at that time of joining up at 16 was that you would be expected to complete adult equivalents of maths, English and ICT GCSE’s, which I did. The army paid for me to get my Cat B and Cat C driving licenses. I took loads of voluntary courses that have continued to benefit me - personal finance, basic mechanics, medical training that’s provided me with everything just shy of becoming a paramedic. I saw some incredible places….and some really awful places around the world.
Also had a really solid salary for someone of that age.
BUT
I can also agree that recruitments tactics are quite predatory. I come from a family with a lot of ex-servicemen, and I feel like I had a pretty good understanding of what I was getting myself into. A lot of my colleagues in the early days really had no idea and dropped out like flies.
As for the people who love to bleat on about national service being a great idea? Ask anyone who’s actually served in the last 15ish years. The vast majority will tell you it’s a horrible idea.
When the shit hits the fan, I want the bloke next to me to be doing his job to the best of his ability because he wants to be there. Not because the government told him he has to be there so he’s not engaged with the job.
I’ll also argue that if the government want to increase the quantity and quality of their recruitment pool, then they need to get a grip of their “resettlement” packages when people get out. Because right now? They simply chew you up and shit you out. Depending on your time served, you might get a little golden handshake, but other than that? You’re on your own now. Figure it out.

I concede "the military" is a necessary evil. Young people who want to join up should by all means do so. I would expect them to be treated better than they have been.

I don't think that using such an important job as a sticking plaster for a failing economy is right.