Army drops re-enlistment bonus

WASHINGTON, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- Corporate executives aren't the only ones losing their bonuses these days -- the U.S. Army says it has dropped an additional bonus to soldiers who re-enlist.

The Army ended the special bonus after exceeding its retention goal, Stars and Stripes reported on its Web site Wednesday. The more than 7,900 soldiers who re-upped rather than leave the Army before their contracts expired Oct. 1 beat the Army's target by more than 700.

The Army had announced in December that soldiers slated to leave active duty by Oct. 1 could be eligible to receive a re-enlistment bonus of up to $18,500. That additional bonus was missing from the Army's latest message Feb. 13 outlining its Selective Re-Enlistment Bonus-Enhanced Program. The change went into effect Feb. 20.

Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Chiarelli said last month recruiting has improved since December 2007, which happens to coincide with the onset of the recession. Economic conditions will be taken into consideration when retention programs are considered, he said.

"They've got to go ahead and look at those and tell us whether or not we have to offer the same bonuses today that we've offered in the past," he said.