Changes in military recruiting may endure after pandemic
By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — COVID-19 has had a dramatic impact on military recruiting, shuttering enlistment stations around the country and forcing thousands of recruiters to woo potential soldiers online. Recruiters have had to abandon their normal visits to high schools and malls. Instead they rely almost exclusively on social media to reach young people. And as that effort builds, Army leaders believe it may evolve into a new system that will allow them to scale back the size and staffing at enlistment storefronts and reduce the number of recruiters. The head of the Army’s recruiting command says recruiters are going to be empowered “to allow for more autonomous recruiting.”