‘Developing and employing the skills and talents of prior service members can benefit individual soldiers and the Army,’ new Army guidance stated.
The U.S. Army is telling unvaccinated former soldiers who were kicked out of the military for refusing to receive a COVID-19 vaccine that they can potentially rejoin the force as the military struggles to draw new recruits.
“Individuals who desire to apply to return to service should contact their local … recruiter,” Brig. Gen. Hope Rampy, U.S. Army director of personnel management, wrote in a letter sent to former Army personnel.
Brig. Gen. Rampy was alerting former members to new guidance that enables soldiers who were kicked out for not receiving a COVID-19 vaccine to ask for their military records to be corrected.
Under the U.S. military’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, the Army booted 1,903 members for not receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.
“Unvaccinated soldiers present risk to the force and jeopardize readiness,” Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said in 2022 as the first soldiers were discharged.
Multiple military branches have struggled to attract new recruits in recent years.
The Army missed its fiscal year 2023 goal by about 10,000.
In response, officials have implemented changes in recruitment strategy, including targeting college graduates and giving bonuses as high as $50,000. The new letter from Brig. Gen. Rampy and associated guidance indicate that the strategy includes trying to bring back soldiers removed for defying the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
The guidance referred to in the letter, dated Nov. 7, states that under Ms. Wormuth’s direction, a number of steps have been taken in recent months, including removing suspensions relating to soldiers who asked for exemptions from the mandate.
Correcting Records
Records of soldiers still in the force are being corrected “to remove adverse actions stemming from requests for exemption from vaccination for COVID-19,” the guidance states, noting that “former soldiers who were involuntarily separated for refusal to receive the vaccination can also request correction of their military records to reflect an honorable, voluntary separation from service.”
