My personal opinion on this is that a boy has to earn, yes I said earn the right to sit in Kollel be it for 1 year, 3 years 5 years or more. If a boy is not serious about learning before he is married he doesn’t belong in Kollel.
Now once someone is in Kollel I think they should have to continue earning the right to be there by
1. Proper attendance. Sounds silly but at work they “take attendance” and late coming isn’t excused unless you have a darn good reason!!!
2. There needs to be a goal yeah a goal! Meaning finish x amount of Gemara a zman, x amount of Halacha…this baloney of learning 2 blatt a zman in Lakewood must stop already. We are mass producing am haaratzim. The average baal habayis finishes shas in daf yomi. The average Kollel guy doesn’t finish a mesechta in all his years in Kollel! (Don’t start with quality vs quantity, Rav Shach Rav Gifter and others railed about the system years ago, it fell on deaf ears)
3. Accountability. There needs to be Bechinos. There should be regular testing going on and people need to be able to maintain a certain grade to stay in Kollel. If you are learning and getting nowhere you have no business in Kollel. Any guy who is serious about his learning should know it decently well at a minimum!
4. There should be special Kollelim for Metzuyanim geared towards producing serious Talmidei Chachamim and Gedolim. I mean guys who are very intelligent and diligent who are prepared to become Rabbanim. This sit and learn and go nowhere until I’m 80 years old has to stop. There are people who have been sitting and learning in Kollel for 45 or more years. Do they know Shas? Do they know one Seder in Shas? Do they know 1 Mesechta COLD? Do they know Poskim?
The current system is a joke and geared towards mediocrity and lack of accountability. We are mass producing lazy people that’s it.
If the above things I mentioned are implemented more than half the people in Kollel would be out. Then there would be more money to pay them what they truly deserve and those who want to learn as Baal Habatim will find the time to learn.
We need to get serious about this.