In his waning days as secretary of defense, Robert Gates is proposing historic changes to what he calls a "rigid, one-size-fits-all approach" to military pay and retirement benefits/.../
A defense analyst said Gates' proposals have been debated in the past but might have more resonance now as the Mideast wars wind down and government leaders are pressured to reduce deficit spending.
"We're still adjusting to how we go to war and even how we operate in peacetime with an all-volunteer force," said Todd Harrison, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. "Part of that is, how do we provide the right incentives?"
Gates' ideas will draw immediate "knee-jerk resistance" from military groups, in part because the compensation system goes back generations and service members fear midcareer changes in their pay and benefits, Harrison said. He predicted that even if adjustments are limited to new recruits or those with a few years' experience, they will be a tough sell.