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Latest 'Stop Loss' keeps thousands of Soldiers in place

Army News Service

Release Date: 11/19/2003

By Staff Sgt. Marcia Triggs

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Nov. 19, 2003) - Soldiers assigned to units that have been selected to participate in the second rotation of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the fifth rotation of Operation Enduring will not be allowed to voluntarily leave the Army or change duty stations under the most recent approved "Stop Loss and Stop Movement" program.

Acting Secretary of the Army Les Brownlee approved the implementation of the Active Army Unit Stop Loss/Stop Movement Program Nov. 13. Soldiers in affected units will be subject to Stop Loss/Stop Movement 90 days before their deployment until 90 days after their redeployed, according officials from the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G1.

Soldiers not affected by this Stop Loss/Stop Movement program implementation include National Guardsmen and Reservists. Those Soldiers are already subject to a Reserve Component Unit Stop Loss program.

The RC Unit Stop Loss policy was approved in November 2002, by Reginald J. Brown, the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs). Stop Loss begins for RC Soldiers when the unit is first alerted and will last 90 days after demobilization.

There will be other categories of Soldiers that will not be affected by this Stop Loss/Stop Movement program, such as, Soldiers on terminal leave or those being involuntarily separated from the Army, ODCS, G1 officials said.

Headquarters, Department of the Army also implemented a Stop Movement, feature to the Stop Loss program, which suspends permanent change of station moves for Soldiers assigned to units that will fall under the Active Army Unit Stop Loss Program, according to ODCS, G1 officials.

Instituting the Active Army Unit Stop Loss, Stop Movement and retaining the RC Unit Stop Loss is to provide equity for all components and ensure unit stability from alert, through redeployment and demobilization, officials said.

The Army Human Resources Command remains the Stop Loss/Stop Movement exception to policy authority.

This decision, by Brownlee, also lifted the last two specialties affected by the All Component, 12-month Skill-Based Stop Loss program. The lift is for officers in the Information Systems Management Field, 53 and Explosive Ordnance Disposal specialists, 55D. This effectively discontinues the All Component, 12-month Skill-Based Stop Loss program for both the active and Reserve components.

Personnel whose military occupational specialty was lifted from the All Component, 12-month Skill-Based program will have the opportunity to continue serving, if in good standing, or they may separate from the Army when they have fulfilled their yearlong commitment under Stop Loss.

By way of background, there have been five increments of Stop Loss in support of Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom, dating back to November 2001. Operation Noble Eagle involves Reserve component Soldiers who were mobilized to support homeland security.

However, the Army continually reviews all job specialties and units to make sure that readiness will not be adversely impacted, G1 officials said.