How much we get paid for our Mandatory Army service?
I don't know what exactly is happening in other countries that have mandatory army service but i can tell you what's the case with Greece. First, of all, we are supposed to have mandatory army service because next to us is Turkey our "enemy" among other factors.
When a boy turns 18 years old he is eligible to do his service but if you decide to enroll in a university you can postpone the army service by a couple of years. Let's say that you have no other ways to postpone it and you have to enlist.
You are given some choices like infantry, navy and airforce. The service is 12 months except if you decide to do your whole service on a ship or near the borders which is 9 months. Now because we suck and there is this "i know someone" kind of attitude, you can do your service by actually doing nothing and be home or by doing everything.
https://media.giphy.com/media/fS9m6oDTv2V0hfiTsk/giphy.gif?cid=ecf05e47wvwtlcezk1fbr3tkswjiowtqa9ts80f1hs8bnhfr&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g
The most common thing is to do everything but i tell you later about this. Let's check the economics and what the army provides you. The first thing we need to know is how much we are getting paid soldiers because we are not considered unemployed.
Each month we get paid around 8.7 euros except if you have over 3 siblings, low income at home or have a wife and kids, then you gain around 10-20 more. Now you need to also remember that the minimum wage is around 600-650 euros.
In other words with 8.7 euros, you can't do anything at all but wait there is more. You are supposed to get paid a lot more but the army keeps that money because they provide you with 1-2 uniforms, 1 pair of shoes, 1-2 T-shirts and 1-2 pairs of socks. Also, they provide you with a bed and food.
Most likely the bed will be a horrible state as thousands have slept there and the same applies to the food. Too many times we discovered worms and bugs inside and i can tell you with certainty that mostly none eats at their military camp, they order from takeaway stores.
Where do they find the money though?
It's one of the following two. Either they used to work and have some money in their bank for that purpose or their family helps them by sending them money. And now get ready for the best part!
Before i mention it i have to tell you that up until a year ago the infantry service was 9 months and they increased it to 12 months, but why? is there a crisis that we need more soldiers?
https://media.giphy.com/media/Yycc82XEuWDaLLi2GV/giphy.gif?cid=ecf05e47msqoe4neb1su5hfwj8ohc2kt7fsqzx6jfk169m5u&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g
The truth is that we are considered as i mentioned earlier as working people so when you increase the service from 9 months to 12 you decrease the general percentage of unemployment. The same applies to the service in general. 1 year of our lives that we are basically unemployed as we earn 8 euros we considered to be employed.
Each year we may have around 8000-10000 soldiers that are doing their term. Just imagine if one day all those considered as what they actually are, unemployed. How much the diagram of unemployment and especially the unemployment rate on young people will increase? (**food for thought*)
I think i gave you a perspective about what the army service actually is on an economic scale. There are many more things behind the scenes that are happening but that's maybe for another time.
https://media.giphy.com/media/LMQo5ad3JdjCAba7Sv/giphy.gif?cid=ecf05e475pof5rxjr26mqruqattdu0c2mutvisjfoe6e4m1s&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
