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AMC ops deputy briefs on manning issues

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Danielle Johnson
  • Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  Joint base Airmen filled the McGuire Theater Monday for a briefing on the current force management initiative.

Brig. Gen. Bradley Pray, Air Mobility Command deputy director of operations, visited the base to provide Airmen some insight into the purpose of force management and what programs are available to those who may be affected.

Air Force officials recently announced the expansion of force management programs to comply with the service's authorized end-strength ceiling and to address growing imbalances among skill sets and experience levels. The efforts are primarily targeted at certain career fields with excess manning, partially caused by the Air Force's highest retention rate in 15 years.

"Those who are affected have a right to feel angry, bewildered and confused," said Col. Lee Wyatt, AMC director of manpower and personnel services. "It's not an exact science. A lot of well-intentioned people - from functional managers, to personnelists, to analysts do their best to determine what future manning needs are going to be."

The colonel likened the situation to a bathtub with the drain open and the faucet on. As the Air Force would bring in and train new Airmen, employment opportunities in the civilian sector would entice experienced Airmen to separate for higher pay. As the economy turned, an event military personnel experts could not predict, retention rates increased resulting in Air Force manning exceeding the authorized limits, the colonel said.

"We started a few voluntary programs early on to try to help shape (the force)," Wyatt said. "The problem was that we had very few Airmen willing to leave. That put the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Air Force in a difficult position because they can only waiver a small amount over our end-strength and then by law they have to comply. So, if we don't start doing something (to reduce overages), we're going to end up with a worse situation by 2012."

Pray also emphasized the current force management programs have been initiated to prevent further imbalances and overages in Air Force manning.

"Your service is very valued and what the Air Force is doing is attacking this problem now so we don't have a more serious problem later on," said Pray, who also emphasized the force management initiative is affecting Airmen at all levels in various pay grades.

According to Chief Master Sgt. Brian Johnston, AMC enlisted development superintendent, efforts are being made to minimize the impact on Airmen currently serving by separating Airmen who fail to complete their initial skills training and who do not qualify for a critically-manned career field. Officials are also slowing down accessions into non-critical career fields. As a result, supervisors in currently over-manned Air Force Specialty Codes may notice a decrease in the number of new Airmen graduating from technical training schools.

Other involuntary reductions will be made through date of separation rollbacks for enlisted Airmen with less than 14 years or more than 20 years of service who are ineligible for reenlistment. These may affect those who are on a control roster, are serving a suspended Article 15 punishment, have declined retainability for an assignment or have declined training.

Voluntary reductions will also be made through reenlistment contract waivers for those who wish to separate and are in a non-critical or overmanned career field.

Officer accessions will also be reduced in a targeted approach, said Wyatt. Officers who fail to meet training standards will not be retained; those who may qualify for a critical career field may be considered for retention on a case-by-case basis. Airmen of all ranks will be considered for separation as a result of disciplinary problems such as driving under the influence.

Officers with more than six and up to 12 years of active service who are in targeted Air Force specialty codes will have the option to take advantage of voluntary separation pay. Applications for VSP are due by June 30. Should the VSP incentive fall short of the required reductions, a reduction in force board will be held in September. Mandatory separation dates for officers affected by the RIF will be no later than March 1, 2011, while officers taking advantage of the VSP may remain on active-duty until May 2011.

A force shaping board will be conducted in September for officers with less than six years of active service who are serving in overmanned AFSCs. Officers not selected for retention must separate by March 1.

Officials will also conduct a selective early retirement board in July for lieutenant colonels who have been twice deferred for promotion to colonel and for colonels with four or more years time in grade. Officers selected for retirement must do so by Jan. 1.