| Abstract: | Multiple regression analysis was used to analyze newly developed twenty year time series of first term reenlistment rates for nine major Navy occupational categories. Results indicate that there are significant differences among the occupational categories in the determinants of their reenlistment behavior. More importantly, it is apparent that reenlistment rates are highly sensitive to current unemployment and especially unemployment about the time of enlistment. By comparison, relative wages (measures of military versus private sector rates of compensation) are relatively insignificant and appear powerless to control reenlistment in the context of normal fluctuations in economic activity. |
