What's behind Gen-Z and the US military recruitment crisis?

A Gen-Z Marine and a retired Navy captain talk about the military's recruiting crisis and the changes it needs to appeal to the next generation.

The phrase "rally the troops" is proving to be easier said than done when it comes to America's Generation Z.

"We are competing in one of the toughest recruiting landscapes that I've seen in over 33 years of service. This recruiting crisis certainly did not appear overnight and cannot be repaired overnight," Major General Johnny K. Davis of the United States Army said during a Senate Armed Services subcommittee hearing in December.

For months, the United States military has been coming to terms with a recruiting crisis of historic proportions. In the 2023 fiscal year, the Department of Defense says the U.S. military missed its goal by about 41,000 recruits—a major hit for the military that has been an all-volunteer force since 1973. So, where's the disconnect between the U.S. military and Generation Z?

"I kept hearing about this intense recruiting crisis, and we knew the military was struggling with our generation," Matthew Weiss, a 2nd lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps, said.

Weiss is the author of the book "We Don't Want YOU, Uncle Sam: Examining the Military Recruiting Crisis with Generation Z." A quick scroll through social media and it's clear to see that Gen-Z has some serious reservations about military service, which has prompted some to even joke about the idea of it.