Many experienced Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members are leaving because of “dissatisfaction” with the institution, with soldiers saying the military leadership is prioritizing cultural change over operational needs, according to an internal report.
“Interview evidence shows that there is a perception that leadership is prioritizing culture change over critical operational needs like ammunition and equipment,” said the September report, which was first covered by Blacklock’s Reporter.
The report analyzed attrition within the CAF and found that among members who have completed operational training, many are experiencing challenges related to a lack of equipment, training, and leadership direction, a “high operational tempo” because of continuous deployments and personnel shortages along with reduced benefits.
The report said that compared to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Coast Guard, which are structured similarly to the Canadian military, the CAF has higher mid-career attrition rates.
For Canadians who have been in the CAF for over 20 years, pension eligibility is the “main reason for higher attrition rates,” the report said. By this point, many members have been posted to many different locations and feel “tired and broken,” according to the report.
Meanwhile, the highest voluntary attrition rates in the CAF are among its lowest-ranking and newest members, which in 2024 had an attrition rate of 9.4 percent compared to the CAF average of 4.3 percent. The report said training delays and difficulty adapting to the military lifestyle were the main reasons for this attrition.
A lack of affordable housing and health care, the loss of employment for spouses during relocation, and limited daycare options on army bases may also lead to higher attrition rates. The report said that for dual-income families, the prospect of a spouse losing income when a CAF service member relocates make it “untenable.”
Canada’s Auditor General Karen Hogan released an Oct. 21 report that found the CAF was struggling to recruit enough members to meet its operational requirements. The audit found that around 192,000 people submitted an online application to join the CAF between April 2022 and March 2025, but 54 percent of the those applicants voluntarily withdrew during recruitment or did not respond to CAF outreach efforts.
The audit also found that the Department of National Defence needs an additional 5,200 to 7,200 residential housing units for members, and its plan to build new housing still leaves a gap of at least 3,800 units. The report also indicated there is inadequate data on military housing and some CAF members are in living quarters that are in poor condition.
Following the report, National Defence Minister David McGuinty said in a statement that he accepted the auditor general’s findings and that the CAF has already made significant progress in “modernizing its recruitment system, strengthening training capacity, and improving the overall applicant experience.”
McGuinty said the CAF has implemented modernization initiatives like introducing a new online applicant portal, a new probation period, and updated medical and assessment standards. He did not mention any initiatives to increase retention within the CAF.
The federal government announced in June that Canada would spend an additional $9.3 billion on defence to help reach its NATO defence spending target of 2 percent of GDP. In August, Ottawa announced higher pay for all CAF members. Starting pay for privates in the regular forces would see a 20 percent increase, while lieutenant colonels and lower ranks would receive a 13 percent raise, and those at the rank of colonel or captain and above would receive an 8 percent raise.
