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NCOs in warrior transition units get more pay

Special Duty Assignment Pay authorized for noncommissioned officers who serve as platoon sergeants and squad leaders with warrior transition units and community based health care organizations has been increased from $225 a month to $375.

The pay increase is retroactive to June 5 for active and reserve soldiers who have served in the warrior transition unit leadership positions since that date.

These special support organizations are Medical Command units that replace medical holding companies, and that are at the center of the Army’s medical action plan, a high-priority program for dealing with wounded warriors that grew out of the Walter Reed scandal of 2007.

About 2,800 Regular Army, National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers serve as cadre for 35 Warrior Transition Units, most of them NCOs coming from outside the medical community.

Special Duty Assignment Pay initially was authorized for platoon sergeants and squad leaders in January at the rate of $225 a month, but the qualifying criteria was rigid, requiring soldiers to have at least two years of experience as a platoon sergeant or squad leader.

The new rules not only increase the pay to $375, the same paid drill sergeants, but eliminate the leadership experience requirement.

While the experience requirement has been eliminated, soldiers with at least 12 months of experience as platoon leaders and squad leaders will be the Army’s first choice for WTU cadre duties.

For specific details about the policy change, consult MilPer Message 08-179, which was issued by the Human Resources Command July 2.