Why are officers recognized with awards more than enlisted?

Because officers are typically better at mentoring each other and teach each other how to operate within the system better. It’s the last Aristocracy within western culture, military officers...

Hi SGT Cody, it called politics, however, we know who do all the work right :-) .

Awards are given for the "impact" of the Soldier's actions, not necessarily just for their "actions"; IAW Regulation. The fact of the matter is that an Officer will impact a broader spectrum then the NCO on most occasions. Thus it is easier to justify their awards. The justification has nothing to do with the actual rank of the Soldier, again it is the impact that their actions have on the Army, Brigade, Battalion, Company, etc. For example if your impact is to your squad then it is not going to justify an MSM, unless you saved the entire life of that squad, where as an impact to a Brigade could be much less then saving ones life, but the impact is more vast and again easier to justify. I hope this helps?

Yeah, the system sucks. But it is our system. If everyone did everything they were supposed to do all the time, we wouldn't need NCO's. Or awards. The 'I was there' buttons I was given weren't just mine. The system isn't designed to be fair or to recognize every act of merit or courage. It is supposed to encourage the behavior. In everybody. Ask any MOH recipient worth the ribbon and they will tell you they wear it for all the guys that can't. That is the idea. “Give me enough medals and I’ll win you any war” Napoleon. There is another quote about fighting for a scrap of cloth or bit of ribbon but the idea is sound and time tested. I am much more concerned with award inflation where they become meaningless and lose their motivating influence.

I received several awards while in Vietnam (67-70) but the best award was seeing one of my E-5 Sergeants getting a Bronze Star for his work with the Montagnards. I still have the picture of the General giving it to him.

I can answer this easily as I was in both the enlisted and officer sides. Simple answer, officers have far more responsibility and visibility. It takes a more standout enlisted person to become visible enough to receive an award, especially higher awards that are not valor related.

Many times it is the unit that makes a difference regarding awards. As a junior officer (and good writer with an MBA) my commanding officer put me in charge of writing up awards for any deserving airman (I was Air Force at the time). I was instructed that you had to build a pyramid unless it was someone in a war zone. So I did that for many enlisted. So that meant starting them out with achievement medals then commendations and so on. I came across someone who made E-7 in under 10 years without any awards. I asked her E-9 about that and he said no one had time to write one up (unit problem). So I skipped the achievement and went right to commendation. In that unit and command no one under Colonel got a Legion of Merit, that meant LTC too. In the war zone it was a little different. Service awards had a rank structure, heroism awards, not so much. It just made a difference if there was someone who knew how to write things up. In WW2 my dad took some shrapnel in the back of his thigh (had the scars until the day he died) was sitting in a waist gunner seat in a B-24 over Europe trying to shot German fighters out of the sky. He got an Air Medal but I asked him about a purple heart and he said "aw, they forgot".

What a load of crap. My first tour in Vietnam I was a Infantry Platoon Leader, I had a punjabi stick driven thru my knee and the medic forgot about it. After an action myself and my Platoon Sergeant were put in for Silver Stars. Never heard a thing. All I came back with was the CIB. On my second tour in RVN I was awarded some and I earned them. As well as what I received over 35 years of service.

Officer evaluations are much more subjective than enlisted. Enlisted are tested prior to promotion. It depends on service because each has a distinct culture despite prattling about being "One Team" and "purple." There are also generational differences. World War II generation lasted through Vietnam. The Vietnam generation peaked with the leading edge of the Baby Boomers who tended to be very career oriented. The post-Vietnam war generation got a good dose of MBO. The all volunteer Army altered the paradigm. Officers who game the system often succeed in getting promoted. I think the Air Force I served in was overly fixated on appearance over substance. A friend who made Lieutenant General advised me, "It's not who or what you are, it's who or what you appear to be that matters." A piece of advice I never took to heart from a USAFA grad was, "If you're going to offend on substance, don't offend on appearance." He was correct, but I just enjoyed offending, especially the pompous and, unfortunately for my career (about which I never really concerned myself), the powerful. I think my strength was that I never cared about promotion. I always went for the job and the joy of doing it, not for where it situated me on the promotion potential list. I retired as a major and while many see that as a "failed career" I did not. I gained a lot of experience, pissed off more than my share of senior officers, and situated myself for a great career as a civilian academic, much of it launched by writing about my Air Force experiences. In the post-Vietnam era movie, "Apocalypse Now" Army CAPT Fred Willard is going "up river" to end the career and life of Col. Walter Kurtz. In reviewing the colonel's personnel record he noted, "He was being groomed to go to the head of the corporation but he decided to go for himself instead." Good advice. If you go into the military with the idea that you are going to serve a higher calling and it may end up costing your life, then don't worry about how many medals you get or what kind of dohicky you wear on your shoulder or collar. If you don't let promotion define who or what you are, you can have a very rewarding career. My complements to COL Kurtz!

This occured in the Navy as well during my time. Captains would receive awards that were a result of the effort, sacrifice, and performance of every member of ships company. As the old saying goes 'we were all in the same boat' but as Orwell observed some are more equal than others.
I would note also that enlisted MOH recipients far outnumber officers.
Of course officers must have decorations to be promoted. We in the enlisted ranks neefed to know our jobs, do our jobs, and provide that first line supervision necessary to accomplish whatever the mission might be.