Up-or-out rules get refined by Army - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

Up-or-out rules get refined by Army

The Army has issued new “up-or-out” rules that significantly reduce the time staff sergeants and below can stay in service without being promoted.

The rules, which take effect June 1, affect nearly 400,000 soldiers.

The new tenure rules, called retention control points, also apply to enlisted National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers assigned to Active Guard and Reserve programs governed by Title 10 of federal law.

The pending changes reduce the high-year tenure for staff sergeant from 23 to 20 years, for promotable sergeant from 20 to 15 years, for sergeant from 15 to 13 years and for corporal and specialist from 15 to 12 years.

This means soldiers must make staff sergeant by their 20th year of active service or earlier to qualify for retirement benefits.

Under the current system, soldiers achieve retirement eligibility when they are placed on the servicewide recommended list for E-6.

Pentagon personnel officials said the new RCPs should not adversely affect many soldiers because promotions, on average, occur at one year for private first class, two years for specialist, 4½ years for sergeant and slightly more than seven years for staff sergeant.

“We don’t have any specific estimates on how many soldiers will [have to leave] because of the changes, but it’s projected to be minimal,” said Sgt. Maj. Dean Drummond, retention policy noncommissioned officer in the Office of the G-1 (Human Resources).

Most affected will be soldiers whose enlistments expire in fiscal 2013 and later.

The changes do not apply to Guard and Reserve soldiers who are mobilized, and those who are assigned to the Individual Ready Reserve, are in M-Day status or serve with a Troop Program Unit. These soldiers do not have retention control points. However, they are required to retire or leave service upon reaching age 60.

The new policies do not apply to senior NCOs in the ranks of promotable staff sergeant and above.

Tenure points for these soldiers changed two years ago when the Army established a “select, train and promote” strategy for advancements to sergeant major.

Among the changes, the RCPs for master sergeant increased from 26 to 29 years, and for sergeant major from 30 to 32 years.

The June 1 changes authorize soldiers to serve on active duty up to their retention control point, plus one month, or age 62 for Regular Army and Army Reserve AGR members, or age 60 for National Guard AGR soldiers, whichever occurs first.

Soldiers who are serving under an enlistment contract, and who subsequently exceed the retention control point for their rank, will be allowed to complete that enlistment, unless they have been reduced in grade.

And, under a temporary transition policy effective June 1 through Oct. 1, soldiers who reach their retention control point while deployed will be allowed to stay on active duty for up to 12 months, plus the 90-day post-deployment stabilization period, upon return to home station.

Separation dates for these soldiers will not be earlier than 90 days from redeployment.

On Oct. 1, the policy waiver will be lifted for deployed soldiers.

Another policy exception applies to Title 10 National Guard soldiers assigned to the Active Guard and Reserve.

Because the provisions of federal law dealing with RCPs do not provide a “promotable” category for Guard members, the RCPs for sergeants and below is 20 years, and 23 years for staff sergeants.

More changes

Here are some other policy details:

• Soldiers who are serving an indefinite re-enlistment and who reach their retention control point because they are reduced in grade, may remain in service until reaching the RCP for the lower rank, or upon reaching retirement eligibility, whichever is later.

Soldiers who have 18 to 20 years of active service will not be separated without the approval of the assistant secretary of the Army for manpower and reserve affairs.

• Soldiers with 20 or more years of service, and who are serving an indefinite re-enlistment when they reach their RCP because of a reduction in grade, must retire 90 to 180 days after the reduction.

The Army announced the RCP changes in late January, three weeks after Defense Secretary Robert Gates called for a 49,000-soldier reduction in the size of the Army.

Lt. Col. Lisa Harvey, chief of the G-1 enlisted professional development branch, said the timing of the two announcements was coincidental.

“The RCP changes are not designed to support” the force reduction, she said.