Comments on: Do Military Members Get Paid Enough?

By: Ryan Guina

Ryan Guina — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:34:57 +0000

Nebu, your best bet is to see if you can find a military recruiter in your area or contact your nearest US embassy for more information. Additionally, look at the website of the branch you want to join and see if there are any frequently asked questions or information about receiving a visa to join the military. Best of luck with your journey.

By: nebu daniel

nebu daniel — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 08:13:34 +0000

i want to serve as a military by getting free visa how can i get it

By: Lee

Lee — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 02:21:52 +0000

I see both sides of this discussion but I have to remark to Jon. Let me preface by saying that I am a manager of 20+ airmen and have been in for 23 years. I hear what you are saying about the military didn’t issue you a family, learn how to budget, etc. Back when you and I were both airmen, we walked to appointments and our jobs if need be, stayed in the dorm rooms, and ate at the dining facility. WE (our age group) should be financially sound. No, we didn’t have all of the resources (money management classes, how to buy a car that’s not a lemon”, we learned the hard way.

Well, today’s military is extremely different now. Bases are bigger, appointments are more frequent, demands are more pressing. With our force shaping and roll backs, I have SrAs and SSgts filling MSgt slots because we have literally lost all of our SNCOs. Where does my point lead? We are asking more of the lower ranks. Their culture is now that of a SNCO. They have to handle this all on a Amn wage. They have to buy vehicles (one within means, of course), which leads to car payments, which leads to insurance (remember how much insurance costs under 25?), which leads to buying gas (a meek 11 gal, 4-cylinder Saturn that used to run on a full tank at $20.00 now fills up for $39.50 on the dot), which leads to car repairs…do you see my point?
The responsible Airman that doesn’t drink, smoke, go out, drink Starbucks weekly, that lives on a good sized base has to have a VEHICLE to drive to work, attend meetings, go to mandatory appointments. Guess what…add this all up and it well exceeds the current Amn’s pay.

No one here is right, no one wrong. Our community is unique and we need each other now more than ever. Let’s stop the judging and buckle down to help each other the best we can.

That is my very humble 2 cents worth..

By: Brandon

Brandon — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 03:35:48 +0000

Military members get discounts too to help.
An workforce that is under apprecatied is farmworkers.
Everyone eats,farmworkers make it happen.
Its an irony that the people who put food on everyones table has trouble puting it on his and his familys. They dont get harzard pay, no discounts, no benifents. They cant go to the doctor beacuse its to0 expensive. Their exposive to chemicals, which leads to health problems and birth defects. A lot of jobs you dont get paid by the hour, but how many boxes you fill. It’s hard work americans arent willing to do, but the people who do the work arent thanked. Please stop complaing about your horrible pay.

By: josh

josh — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 01:01:30 +0000

I have noticed both sides of this argument on here and each has valid points. I am and E-4 in the Air Force and have just recently hit a point where my wife and I feel we can live comfortably the way we want and still put some money away each month. I will tell you though, the years leading up to this were pretty rough financially. Another factor for spouses is that, these days especially, it’s difficult to find a decent job when the military member has to move every few years or less. My wife had just found a couple part-time jobs she liked then we had to pack up and move. Now she is once again trying to find a decent job. This is one of those things that isn’t really taken into consideration much. The DLA helps a little, but not much. We should get paid more to compensate for the wages our spouses are unable to find because of constant moves. Oh yeah, there’s also that one little point that we could be put in harm’s way on a moment’s notice. Ya ya, people are supposed to join the military because they want to protect their country and all that, but in the end it is a job, and we don’t really get paid for what we do. With my technical experience, obvious work ethics, and complete background check I should be able to get a great job on the outside. But in today’s economy is it really worth the risk to quit a decent job and hope to get hired at a different job? Nope. Most of us are worth so much more than what we are getting paid.

By: josh

josh — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 00:45:10 +0000

BAS only covers food for the enlisted person, not their family. If you are married and/or have several children, that is on you.

By: Ryan Guina

Ryan Guina — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 01:52:44 +0000

Valerie,

I hear you – I worked irregular hours when I was enlisted as well. Our chow hall had 4 meal times, with the last one being until around 1am. I know several enlisted members who were able to get their First Sergeant to allow them to receive BAS instead of receiving chow hall benefits because they were rarely ever able to make it to chow because of mission duties. Many senior enlisted members and officers don’t consider the hours as a factor for meals because it isn’t something they experience on a daily basis. I recommend taking this issue to your First Sergeant and/or CO to see if they can work out alternate arrangements – either convince the chow hall to change their hours if enough people are affected, or give you BAS.

Best of luck, and thanks for your service.

By: valerie

valerie — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 01:07:46 +0000

I would rather receive comrats(food allowance) vs it coming out of my pay. I am a e3. And I have 300 a month come out for food..that I rarely even get. I’m part of the lcac community so many a time am on flights the hours vary. If I don’t get home till 2 am and you really expect me to wake up at 6 am just to get breakfast? The gally is only open during certain time periods. So needless to say I spend money on my own food in ADDITION to the 300 a month that’s being automatticly taken out. Yes I do not have a family to support I suppose many would tell me not to complain. But I do make less, I save every penny that doesn’t go to bills. So that additional 300 being taken out plus what I spend on food a month is a lot to an e3. I agree that we should get some kind of noticable raise. If I got paid by the hour at minimum wage I would be living comfortably for sure!

By: Jon

Jon — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 18:16:59 +0000

As a Staff Sergeant with 7 years of service in the military so far I can honestly say that we get compensated very well. I have never had a problem taking care of my wife and my son. I’m tired of other soldiers complaining that we don’t get paid enough (especially the young, single soldiers). You simply cannot compare military pay to civilian pay. You chose to join the service knowing that you would deploy to combat zones and be put in harm’s way. Stop complaining about how much money you make; being part of the service isn’t even about the money. If you ask me, Commissioned Officers, Federal civilian employees and military contractors get paid too much. I completely agree with “Frank,” looks like me and him are in the same boat. To the lower enlisted service members who are supporting their families: learn some basic money management skills (don’t buy that fully loaded 2011 whatever with 20″ spinning rims), build an emergency fund, quit smoking and drinking and stick it out for a few years. Like with any job, civilian or government, you need to put in your dues and earn your way up the ladder until you have reached the point of “comfortable living.” To be perfectly blunt, it is not the Army’s (or whatever organization you are a part of) job to take care of your family, it is yours.

By: frank

frank — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:19:44 +0000

BAH covers the housing
BAS covers food