"They promote it as if it works. But in reality, it doesn’t." Recruitment to AFU — where it fails and what to do about it

Oksana Ivanytska writes about this in her article on hromadske
The practice, which had previously been used only by individual units, was finally recognized at the state level. Against the backdrop of a stagnant mobilization with traditional, sometimes Soviet methods, many people liked the new system: the opportunity to get into a specific unit and a specific position worked as an additional incentive.
However, as the scale of the system increased, so the number of questions rose. The system turned out to be imperfect: sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't.
Read about the pitfalls of recruiting, the human factor in the TCR (Territorial Centre for Recruitment - ed. note), why some recruits were "shafted," and what new rules the General Staff wants to regulate the process in the hromadske article.
What is recruitment and how should it work?
In general, recruiting is the search for employees for a specific vacancy. Military recruitment is the same process, but here candidates are recruited for positions in army units. At the same time, civilian experience is taken into account as much as possible.
Despite the advantages of this system, there is no talk of a complete transition to it as the main method of recruitment to the Armed Forces. Currently, it is an additional specialized line that will work in parallel with general mobilization.
Thus, a potential recruit can directly apply for a vacancy that interests him or her. This can be done on online job search platforms, in recruitment centers (the Ministry of Defense has now launched one such center in Lviv), or on the websites and separate recruitment centers of some units.
After submitting a resume, a potential candidate is interviewed and tested. At this stage, you can even change your mind and continue your search elsewhere. If everything suits you, you can join the unit.
In this case, the unit writes out a letter of introduction — a reference letter of the prescribed form with which the recruit goes to the TCR. This applies to both those who want to sign a contract and those who are mobilized.
After the TCR, as in the general procedure, it is necessary to undergo a military medical commission (MMC) and training at a training center. Only then does the actual service begin.
The Ministry of Defence launched a recruitment campaign in mid-November 2023. It is working with four job search services: Lobby X, Work.ua, Robota.ua and Olx.ua, which provide their platforms free of charge. In the near future, the Ministry of Defence plans to scale up its own recruitment centers.
"They advised me to look for my own 'network'"
"I applied to the TCR with an introduction letter from the unit and passed the MMC. But I was told that with this introduction letter, I could not join the unit I wanted and take the position I wanted," Serhii (name changed) tells his story to hromadske.
A 40-year-old man with two degrees and experience working with computer systems and networks, he left his managerial position in a company and decided to be useful to the army: he applied for an officer position as an information security specialist in automated systems. 20 years ago, he graduated from a military department and had a primary commissioned rank.
But already at the TCR, he was aware that he had that he had very little chance of getting the position he had chosen. He was sent to a retraining course at a military university
"No one in the TCR was interested in my civilian experience at all. They just said that there was an order to send all officers to retraining courses. And then it will happen," Serhii, recruit
"Later, during the course, in my study group (where there are about 20 people from different regions of Ukraine), it turned out that more than half of them had the same story as me. People had interviews with military units, received introduction letters. But it was still not taken into account.
Some people were told that the introduction letter would work, but only after training. And when a person ends up here, it turns out that the chance is very, very small. The higher education institutions itself has nothing to do with the distribution. We will be informed about who will be assigned to which unit about a day before graduation," says Serhii.
He does not complain about the quality of the courses, which last 3 months. On the contrary, he assures that all the instructors have combat experience. He stays in touch with his chosen unit and does not give up hope of getting to the position he has already agreed upon.
"During the course, we were told directly: "If you have your own 'network' to the General Staff or the Ministry of Defense, you are free to decide for yourself whatever you want." - Serhii, recruit
However, the man personally knows several people from the enlisted persons who, based on the introduction letters of their units, managed to get where they wanted to go. Perhaps it doesn't work for everyone, but it would be worth informing people about it," the recruit complains.
"I do not consider myself deceived and do not despair, because my motivation is to be as useful as possible. But, in my opinion, it would be advisable to have as much information as possible when promoting recruitment. If the introduction letters, so to speak, do not work for the officer corps, people should know about it."

Introduction letters: why it works in some places and not in others
The situation with military recruitment is really different: in contrast to cases where the introduction letters of some units do not work, there are many successful cases. Having talked to many participants in the process, we have concluded that the "human factor" and the established contacts between units and territorial recruitment centers have played a major role so far.
The process is even better organized in units that have their own recruiting centers. We are talking, in particular, about the Third Assault Brigade, which was actually the first to set this trend together with Azov, as well as the Da Vinci Wolves battalion. To ensure that everything goes well, the recruits are accompanied throughout the process.
"In any case, everyone goes through all the bureaucracy at the TCR. Just under our supervision, to make it easier," explains Dmytro Koziatynskyi, a combat medic who is currently in charge of recruitment at Da Vinci's Wolves, in a comment to hromadske.
"There are certain mechanisms to ensure that a person joins us immediately. For example, if you sign a contract. Although this also works in principle for mobilization, there are just some nuances. For the most part, everything happens through agreements with the TCR or at the level of training centers."
"Since the introduction letter is a letter of recommendation, the TCR and training centers could "not to give a monkey's" on it," Dmytro Koziatynskyi, Da Vinci Wolves recruiter.
However, the employment platforms that cooperate with the Defense Ministry say there are no widespread problems. They say that even if something goes wrong, it's a rare occurrence.
"We have support for all recruits - chat, phone. If any difficulties arise, they are resolved mainly at the level of the military unit's command, even without our intervention.
If this is not enough, for example, if the human factor has affected at the level of a TCR or training center and a person has already started serving in another unit, then we can contact the General Staff," Vladyslav Hreziev, the head and founder of the Lobby X recruiting agency, tells Hromadske.
Recruiting on the enthusiasm of the brigades
Meanwhile, another potential recruit, Oleksii (name changed), has been on the string for over a month. He found a vacancy, had an interview with a particular brigade, and quit his job. However, the TCR could not guarantee him that he would be assigned to the desired place.
"I'm neither here nor there right now. So far, the brigade told me to wait. I understand they are communicating through the TCR," the man says.
"I don't want to give any estimates yet that something is not working. But I can say this: currently, recruitment as such works mainly on the personal enthusiasm of the brigades and their cooperation with the TCR.
But this is wrong. Now they are doing something about it, but they have promoted it as if it is already working, but in fact it is not."
"They say: "Come and choose for yourself before they choose for you" - well, that's a bit of a lie," Oleksii, recruit
In one of the battalions currently fighting in the Lyman direction, they say they lost three potential recruits. After the training center, they were sent to other brigades.
"We chose them, they came to the military recruitment office themselves, they were sent to the training center. We were promised that they would get to us, but this did not happen," former special prosecutor Serhii Horbatiuk, who is now in charge of personnel in the 23rd Separate Rifle Battalion, tells hromadske.
"I started to find out - I called everywhere, trying to pick them up, but instead a respected military official told me: "The person who promised that he would join you was lying intentionally to you. And you can't change anything."
And these bosses who don't care about anything are the main problem. Because people are trying to get into the army, and they discourage them from doing so," Horbatiuk adds.
The problem is that recruitment is also not regulated by law," says Oksana Dohoter, a lawyer at Actum Law Firm.
We, for example, still write complaints and claim them with such general constitutional rights. We argue that "a person has expressed a desire to mobilize voluntarily, so what are you doing?" And in some cases, it really works," the lawyer notes.
New rules of the General Staff
The Defense Ministry admits that it hasn't taken long to perfect all the details. And the problematic cases are attributed to the scale of the process.
"If we say that as of today, 1245 units have published these vacancies, then we have 1245 different decision-making centers. Accordingly, there are possible nuances in approaches, documentation, etc.," Oleksii Bezhevets, an authorized representative of the Ministry of Defense on recruitment, explains to hromadske.
To regulate this issue, the General Staff of the Armed Forces issued a new directive at the end of February: now a person can choose a vacancy and be guaranteed to get into the chosen unit, but only if the military unit is on the priority recruitment list," Bezhevets says. "The list has been approved: it includes about 80 units. However, the list itself is not made public.
The Defense Ministry explains: "We have to understand that it is the General Staff that sees the whole picture: where who is needed and where there is a priority for manning military units. Of course, the priority of manning is for combat units in the most important areas."
"We cannot give loose reign to all these issues go on their own, so that military units can recruit anyone and everyone they want through recruitment," Oleksii Bezhevets, Defense Ministry recruitment representative.
In order to control these processes, the General Staff eventually decided to prioritize the recruitment of units. All the innovations from this directive are described in keywords:
- As of today, the list of military units for priority recruitment has been approved. It includes about 80 units. The list will be reviewed once a month.
- One hundred percent guarantee to join the chosen unit for the chosen position will be only if the unit is on the "priority" list. This applies to both contracting and mobilization.
- If recruits have a reference letter from a priority recruitment unit, training centers and TCRs will not have the opportunity for abuse of power. The directive specifically states that in this case, it is prohibited to transfer a person to other military units.
- At the same time, if a person wants to be mobilized to a unit that is not on the "priority" list of the General Staff, the chances of getting there are low because in this case, the letter of recommendation is not mandatory. If it is a contractual form of service, the chances are higher, but the military unit must coordinate the appointment with the higher command, which in turn must coordinate with the General Staff.
- The person who receives the introduction letter must check on their own (at the level of the unit, TCR or recruiting center) whether the unit they have chosen is on the priority recruitment list to ensure that they are guaranteed to go through the process under the current regulations.
- If it is a contractual form of service, the chances are higher, but the military unit still has to coordinate the appointment with the higher command, which in turn has to coordinate with the General Staff. Such a letter is mandatory only if the appointment is approved.
- Candidates with a recommendation letter visit the TCR to clarify their credentials, undergo MMC and professional selection. Candidates with service experience over the past 10 years (or those assigned to a particular military occupational specialty) are sent directly to designated units. Those who have no experience are sent to training centers.
This information has been provided to military units and military recruitment offices by 100%. It has been brought to notice to everyone," Bezhevets said.
At the same time, as of the time of preparation of this article, our interlocutors, including the Da Vinci Wolves and the 23rd separate rifle battalion, had not heard anything about the new directive.
When asked whether the Ministry of Defense believes that those who thought the recruitment process in the Armed Forces was a half-truth will now be confirmed in this opinion, Oleksii Bezhevets replied:
"In my personal opinion, as an officer of the Armed Forces, the half-truth is a little different. The half-truth is the search for reasons and excuses why I have not yet joined the defense of my homeland.
This is the main question in fact. That is, it is a matter of motivation, consciousness, choice, a matter of the state, which can defend itself only when citizens are ready to defend this state.
Of course, there may be some problems in the process. Especially since the challenges for the state are global. But we are doing our best to solve these problems."