Improve treatment for junior officers

Chung Jae-hong

The author is an international, diplomatic, and security news editor of the JoongAng Ilbo.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, on Armed Forces Day on Oct. 1, shared a meal with military personnel and soldiers at the Army’s 25th Infantry Division in Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi, and vowed as the commander in chief to tend to their needs so that soldiers can wield their best in combat capabilities.

The president’s promise could have been a big encouragement for the conscripts. The nation cannot demand assiduous defense commitment without treating the soldiers right. Even in the high-tech warfare age, it is the people on the battlefield who decide a war’s outcome. Our security front against the North Korean threat can be assured when it is at the hands of superior forces with high morale.

But the reality of the South Korean troops is quite different. The middle rank of the Army is shaking due to shortages of entry-level commissioned officers. More than half of the 108 universities that run the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program failed to meet their quota as of July. The Army, for the first time in 62 years, had to recruit ROTC cadets in an additional application period to fill the quota. But only 100 have applied. The competition rate for ROTC bidders in the first half was an all-time low of 1.6 to 1.

Bids for the Korean Military Academy, the Korean Army Academy at Yeongcheon, North Gyeongsang, and military officers have also been waning. The competition rate for male bidders at the Military Academy and the Air Force Academy, which used to top 35 to 1 in 2019, fell to half in 2021. The competition rate for entries to the Korean Army Academy and the ROTC also halved during the same period. The bidding ratio for non-commissioned officers also fell to 3.1 to 1 last year from 4.5 to 1 in 2018.

The shunning owes to negligent support for junior officers, whereas the conditions for conscripts improved through shortened service periods and higher pay. The demographic challenges from the ultralow birth rate mean the situation would worsen.

Army conscripts now serve 18 months, whereas the ROTC service period can be up to 36 months. The monthly pay for conscript would be 1.65 million won ($1,200) next year and 2.05 million won in 2025. The pay for the second lieutenant would be 2.84 million won. The initial pay for a staff sergeant would be 2.73 million won. To the young, it can make more sense to serve as a conscript than an officer whose service period is longer with greater duties and yet relatively lower pay.

The entry-level commissioned and non-commissioned officers are responsible for the soldiers they command. Their morale represents the combat capabilities of the unit.

President Yoon Suk Yeol shares a meal with soldiers at the Army’s 25th Infantry Division in Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi, on Armed Forces Day, which falls on Oct. 1 every year

The fall in the number of applicants to become junior officers — critical for maintaining combat capabilities amid waning conscripts from the low birthrate and their choice not to stay in the military — can be devastating for our armed forces. Measures to raise the pride and morale of junior officers are imperative.

The Ministry of National Defense proposed a 562-billion-won budget to improve the conditions for entry-level officers in next year’s budget. But the government agreed to a raise of just 199.8 billion won due to the overall tightening budgetary scheme. Improving working conditions for entry-level officers was pushed aside so that more money could be spent to upgrade weapons capabilities against the North Korean nuclear threat. The plan to dole out allowances for holiday and after-business hour work was sacked, too. The proposal to raise the weekday overtime pay to 30,000 won from 10,000 won also was rejected.

In May, a one-person relay strike took place in front of the legislature to demand a correction of the night duty pay that is just 714 won per hour, which is sharply below the minimum hourly wage of 9,620 won.

The military has neglected benefits for entry-rank officers and soldiers. The treatment of soldiers has improved on political calculation. But junior officers remain in the dark. If military morale falls because they feel injustice, efforts to strengthen defense capabilities will be in vain.

Maximizing the capabilities of statutory forces is essential amid the thinning of conscript resources from the low birthrate. The benefits for junior officers must improve so that military service can be an appealing career for young people. It will be better for the ministry to adjust the budget of 562 billion won to improve the treatment of junior officers. The government and defense authorities must do their utmost to improve the conditions for officers so that they can willingly do their best to improve combat capabilities.