The Infantry's "Problem of Quality": Classification and Assignment to MOS 745, Rifleman, 1942-1945.

This article examines the classification and assignment of U.S. Army inductees to military occupational specialty (MOS) 745, rifleman, between 1942 and 1945. Before fall 1944, "high-quality" inductees were primarily sent into the Army Service Forces or Army Air Forces, while "low-quality" men were channeled into the ground combat arms, in particular the infantry. This was a utilitarian error that led to poor combat performance in early deploying divisions and a social inequity that imposed a higher burden of lethal risk on less-privileged men. Only out of dire necessity, late in the war, did high-quality inductees become riflemen in significant numbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]