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Army limits re-up options

by Staff Sgt. Marcia Triggs

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Feb. 25, 2003) - Re-enlistment options are being limited to prevent the Army from exceeding end-strength numbers authorized by Congress, said a personnel official.

"We're taking away incentives and making it harder for soldiers who are flagged (to regain eligibility) to re-enlist," said Sgt. Maj. James Vales, the G1 retention sergeant major. "This is to dissuade soldiers who are not totally dedicated to the Army or who are not of the caliber we want to keep."

The Army is authorized 480,000 troops, and Congress has mandated that the Army stay within 1 percent of that number, Vales said. Projections show that for fiscal year 2003, personnel strength will exceed the mandate. By taking away options, no one will be prevented from re-enlisting, but the numbers will be moderated, he added.

Korea is the only option mid-term soldiers serving on a second or subsequent enlistment period will have if they want to re-enlist for an overseas assignment. Overseas and stateside assignments are the most popular options soldiers inquire about, said Sgt. 1st Class Michael Moss, a career counselor for the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army.

"Some soldiers are disappointed that they have to re-enlist for the needs of the Army, but we don't re-enlist soldiers for options, but for service to this nation," Moss added.

Another incentive that has been cut is the Selective Reenlistment Bonuses, which are monetary incentives given to soldiers in jobs that are short and have inadequate retention levels.

"Bonuses have been limited considerably compared to the last fiscal year," said Sgt. 1st Class David Gross, career counselor, Combined Joint Task Force-180, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C., who was quoted in an article from the 11th Public Affairs Detachment in Afghanistan. "Not only are the funds limited, but also the MOSs which offer bonuses."

A decrease in monetary incentives can be attributed to Congress cutting the SRB budget by $26 million, Vales said.

Not only have incentives been taken away, some soldiers in over-strength military occupational specialties will be forced to reclassify into MOSs with shortages, especially those specialties with a shortage of soldiers in the ranks of sergeant and staff sergeant which have become known as STAR MOSs because they are typically marked with an asterisk or star on personnel lists.

In some cases, soldiers who don't want to re-classify will have to voluntarily separate from the Army, Vales said.

An early-out option is being considered and will be available to soldiers in over-strength MOSs this calendar year, Vales said. Once approved, soldiers will be able to separate from the Army 90 days before their end-of-service date, he said.

Keeping in soldiers whose main focus is to serve their nation and maintain high standards is one of the ways the new retention changes are to keep active-duty numbers down, officials said.

Career counselors must assist commanders to ensure that only the very best soldiers are given the privilege of re-enlisting, stated a Re-enlistment Eligibility MILPER message released in January.

It's going to be tougher for soldiers who become ineligible to "re-up" while in their re-enlistment window, which begins 12 months before their end-of-service date and stays open for nine months, Vales said.

Two things that could jeopardize soldiers who want to continue their career in the Army are: repetitive or recent non-judicial punishment, and slow rank progression resulting from a pattern of marginal conduct or performance, the MILPER message stated. If a soldier fails a physical training test while in the re-up window, he's automatically ineligible to re-enlist unless he gets a waiver from the first general officer in his chain of command, Vales said. In the past, if the soldier retested and passed, then he would become eligible, Vales added.

"We understand that even the best soldiers have bad days," Vales said, "this is so their chain-of-command looks at them a little closer."

So far, the changes have not deterred soldiers from wanting to continue their military service.

"Soldiers that want to stay in are re-enlisting," Moss said. "They understand that the needs of the Army cannot be overlooked."

"The soldiers' patience is appreciated during this time," Gross said. "Hopefully things will die down soon and we can start providing troops with more options.

"Even with the changes, the Army is still a great opportunity for soldiers to continue doing good things for their families and for their country," Gross said.