8th Personnel Command
The mission of 8th PERSCOM is to sustain personnel readiness and exercise command and control over assigned theater-level personnel units. The theater PERSCOM manages critical personnel systems and synchronizes personnel network operations throughout the theater. The command is headquartered in Yongsan with subordinate units located throughout Korea. The 516th PSB is headquartered in Yongsan with detachments located at Cp Humphreys and Cp Henry. Also, the 516th PSB, Delta Co, is responsible for controlling all incoming mail to Korea. Postal platoons are located in Yongsan, Kimpo Airport, Cp Humphreys and Cp Henry. The 1st Replacement Company, located in Yongsan, is responsible for controlling and processing all incoming soldiers entering Korea. The EUSA Band in Yongsan, performs throughout the Korea. The 509th PSB at Cp Casey has subordinate unit, the 19th AG Company (Postal) with platoons located at Camp Casey and Camp Red Cloud.
The 8th Personnel Command was permanently organized under a Table of Organization and Equipment (TOE) effective 16 October 1987. The command is the successor to a number of units responsible for Army personnel administration in Korea. Originally there was the Office of the Adjutant General, Eighth United States Army; then the U.S. Army Military Personnel Center-Korea (MILPERCEN-K); and most recently, the 8th Personnel Command (Provisional). These organizational changes were made to consolidate and centralize all Army personnel service support in the Theater.
The 8th Personnel Command (Provisional) was activated 15 January 1982 as a major subordinate command of Eighth Army. It was comprised of the following subordinate units; Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 199th Personnel Service Company, 516th Personnel Service Company, 1st Replacement Regulating Detachment, Headquarters, Postal Group-Korea, and 1st, 10th, 19th, 66th, 81st and 117th AG Detachments (Postal). The 1st AG Det (Postal) was transferred to 8th PERSCOM (Provisional) with the new title of ROKA Affairs Directorate, enabling 8th PERSCOM to provide greater efficiency in administrative support for the KATUSA program and supervision of the KATUSA Reception/Training Center at Camp Humphreys. As a result of the reorganizations, Theater Army Personnel Command (PERSCOM) doctrine has been implemented within the Republic of Korea, with an effective peacetime organization that could readily transition to partial/full mobilization with minimum disruption to personnel service support.
The distinctive unit insignia was authorized on 27 Jan 1987, consisting of three interlocking gold rings centered on an octagon divided in the manner of a Korean taeguk, red above and blue below, all bordered in base by a tripartite gold scroll, with the ends folded under and inscribed "SOLDIER SERVICE SUPPORT" in black letters. The three interlocking annulets signify the principal elements of the Command's mission: it is of and for soldiers; it provides the full range of personnel, administrative, and community life services; and in so doing it supports the Eighth United States Army. The association with the Eighth Army is symbolized by the octagon. The "S" division of the colors of the octagon alludes to the Korean taeguk and refers to the unit's activation and service in the Republic of Korea.
8th Personnel Command ended 25 years of distinguished unit service to the 8th U.S. Army when Col. Michael J. Harris, commander, 8th Personnel Command, and Command Sergeant Major Carlos Martinez-Rivera officially cased 8th PERSCOM’s colors in an Inactivation Ceremony held on Yongsan’s Knight Field 15 June 2005.
8th PERSCOM’s inactivation and subsequent merger with the 8th U.S. Army G-1 had no impact on the personnel support provided to Soldiers. The merger of G-1 and AG personnel coincided with several new personnel service support initiatives that capitalize on the latest information technology. The 8th PERSCOM consisted of a directorate staff, two personnel services battalions and a headquarters company, for a total of about 700 Soldiers. The directorate staff merged with 8th U.S. Army G-1 to form a consolidated G-1/AG. This merger aligned with emerging Army Doctrine and was part of an incremental process that paved the way for the transformation of all PERSCOM units. The Adjutant General Corps postal and personnel services units have provided support for Soldiers, civilians, and family members stationed in South Korea since the conclusion of the Korean War in 1953.
