WASHINGTON -- The Navy needs to retain close to 80 percent of its force each year if it hopes to meet staffing requirements of a 355-ship fleet.
That word came from the Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Admiral Robert Burke to members of the House Armed Services subcommittee on military personnel.
"Because, we don't want a junior force manning a 355-ship Navy," he said. "We want a mix of experienced people, so we need in the 70 to 80 percent region. We're in that ballpark right now."
Burke said the Navy is on track grow by 7,500 active duty personnel this year and by 5,000 sailors each year through Fiscal Year 2024.
But, he said, even with "surgical" retention bonuses, it won't be easy.
"Finding the right people is as important as making the numbers," he said. "The war for talent as you've heard already is real and the competition is increasing. We have challenges that remain and we still have work to do if we're going to be where we need to be if we're going to be truly competitive. But we're on a good path."
Lawmakers said one thing the Navy and other services must improve if they want to keep their people is child care, which they said is woefully insufficient as is.
"Everywhere I went, didn't matter if it was the Army, the Air Force, the Marines -- it didn't matter -- child care is a huge problem," said Rep. Jackie Speier (D-California), the subcommittee's chairwoman. “What needs to happen is a comprehensive look at what the need is, and then immediate steps taken to either start building the facilities or finding the opportunities for these families to get quality child care.”
Representative Elaine Luria (D-Va., 2nd District ) agreed, saying it's a major problem for her constituents, especially single military parents, dual military parents where one parent is deployed, and military parents who have to stand duty overnight. "There are only 24 spots for overnight child care within the Hampton Roads region," she said. "That seems like an unacceptable amount to meet the demand."