WOMEN AND MINORITIES IN AMERICA'S VOLUNTEER MILITARY

CURTIS L. GILROY (*) I. INTRODUCTION Economists contributed significantly to the debate about the efficacy of an all-volunteer force (AVF) as Oi (1967a, 1967b), Hansen and Weisbrod (1967), and Altman and Fechter (1967) pioneered the theoretical and empirical work. Thirty-five years later, Warner and Asch (2001) provide a review of the literature and the issues surrounding that debate and discuss the record of and prospects for America's volunteer military. But little attention has been paid to changes in the representation of women and minorities in the military during the AVF era. Since the onset of the volunteer military almost 30 years ago (1973), the American workforce has become more diverse, and the active-duty military reflects that diversity. Consider the following comparisons of full-time military-age (18-44 years) civilian workers and active-duty military personnel in 1970 and 2000. Over that 30-year period, the percentage of civilians who were white fell from 89% to 70%, and the proportion of blacks rose from 10% to 12% and other racial categories from 1% to 18%. The percentage of women in the civilian workforce rose from 29% to 41%. Percentage changes in the active-duty military population between 1970 and 2000 were comparable: from 83% to 65% white, from 11% to 20% black, and from 6% to 14% Hispanic and other racial/ethnic backgrounds. Women as a proportion of all military personnel increased from 2% to 15%. Although strides have been made by many organizations in the civilian sector, the equal opportunity record for the armed services is one that stands out. The military is the only large organization in which large units (comprised mostly of men) are led by women, and large units (comprised largely of whites) are led by minorities. It is a testimony to how well integration and equal opportunity work in the armed forces. Although few would maintain that the military's work is done in this area, progress has been steady over the years due in large part to its constant monitoring of programs, scrutiny of trends in population representation, internal surveys and studies of its personnel, and aggressive approach to management training. These have led Dorn (1991, 1992), Eitelberg (1993), and Moskos (1994) to argue that the military remains ahead of the private sector in promoting racial and ethnic integration and the employment of women in nontraditional jobs. II. THE GATES COMMISSION AND THE BEGINNING OF THE AVF In the years leading up to the inception of the AVF in 1973, the military force was predominantly male and white. Although the Gates Commission (1970) had relatively little to say about women in the military (they made up less than 2% of the armed forces), it did address a concern raised in some quarters about a volunteer military becoming "too black." Those who held this view argued that the higher pay required for a volunteer force would be particularly appealing to blacks that have poor civilian opportunities relative to their white counterparts. Black service members already had higher overall reenlistment rates, and some believed that a volunteer force would lead to a disproportionate number of blacks entering military service. White enlistment and reenlistment rates would decline, further leading to a black-dominated enlisted force. Racial tensions would grow; whites would become disenchanted with military service, and blacks would resent sharing a disproportionate burden of defense. Also, the military would be seen as "creaming" qualified black youth for service in the military--taking them away from jobs in the civilian community where their talents were needed (Gates Commission, 1970, p. 142). The commission recognized these arguments, but predicted that the force would not become predominantly black with the end of conscription. Regardless of what proportion of blacks would ultimately make up the AVF, the commission believed that policy makers should not lose sight of the real issue. …