Prime Minister Mark Carney says his government will boost entry-level pay for Canadian Armed Forces privates by 20 per cent for the regular force and 13 per cent for reservists.
Other military members will also receive pay raises, with smaller increases for higher ranks — part of a plan to boost recruitment and operational readiness.
The federal government says the new compensation package is expected to cost around $2 billion annually and is part of a planned $9.3 billion budget boost this year to get to NATO’s defence spending benchmark target of two per cent of GDP.
The government says it’s creating new military allowances and enhancing existing ones to help it retain personnel and drive up recruitment in a competitive job market.
Those allowances include $50,000 in bonuses for people entering and working in what the government calls "stressed occupations” — critical jobs in sectors that are seeing too many vacancies.
The government says staffing levels in 53 of 116 critical occupations, which include vehicle and maritime technicians, are now below 75 per cent.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
