Recently released salary figures point to a smaller raise for those in uniform in 2026 than in recent years, and while these numbers remain a key compensation guideline, MOAA is rallying support for major changes to the DoD pay table to ensure junior servicemembers can keep up with rising costs.

The Employment Cost Index (ECI) for private industry wages and salaries reached 4.1% for the three-month period ending in June, according to figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on July 31. Last year, that figure sat at 4.6%. If the figure remains lower than last year’s entering September, it could result in a lower DoD pay raise, as the September figures, by statute, are used to compute future increases.

[TAKE ACTION: Ask Your Lawmakers to Support MOAA’s Summer Advocacy Campaign, Including a Junior Enlisted Pay Raise]

The military pay raise has matched ECI every year for nearly a decade. It’s a lagging indicator – the 5.2% raise servicemembers received in 2024 matches the September 2022 ECI, for example, and the proposed 4.5% raise for the coming year matches the September 2023 ECI.