Chief of the defence staff Gen. Wayne Eyre has ordered an immediate halt to all non-essential activities in favour of boosting military recruitment and retention, as the Canadian Armed Forces faces an unprecedented personnel crisis.
Eyre issued the sweeping order to senior commanders across the country on Thursday, saying dramatic action is needed to ensure the military has the troops to respond to growing demands and threats at home and abroad.
The reconstitution order sets a completely new direction for the military after years of high-tempo deployments and operations in Canada and overseas by making the recruitment and retention of personnel its top priority. The Armed Forces is supposed to be adding about 5,000 troops to the regular and reserve forces to meet a growing list of demands, but is instead short more than 10,000 trained members — meaning about one in 10 positions are currently vacant.
It also underscored the need for urgency, saying: “The rebuilding process needs to occur on an accelerated timeline given the geopolitical environment that we find ourselves operating within, especially in light of the invasion of Ukraine.” Eyre also opens the door to more flexible working arrangements for service members while emphasizing the continued need to change the military’s culture to better attract and retain women, Indigenous people and other under-represented groups.Sign up for our newsletter to get breaking news and daily digests sent to your email.“Culture change will remain the top departmental priority throughout the reconstitution process,” the order reads.
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