CommunityEditor
02-17-2009, 07:54 PM
The Enhanced Selective Re-enlistment Bonus program, a recent victim of sharp budget cuts, will be hit with a new round of reductions Friday.
The Feb. 20 changes will update the Enhanced SRB rates that went into effect Jan. 1, and were sharply smaller than the bonuses available during the first three months of fiscal 2009.
That means soldiers who qualify for a bonus, and who are inclined to re-enlist, have until Feb. 19 to sign up for the more attractive rates that expire or are reduced Friday.
Most noticeable among the changes is the elimination of the “ETS” (expiration term of service) option that was targeted at soldiers whose current enlistments expire Sept. 30, the end of fiscal 2009.
This category features bonuses of $2,000 to $18,500 for soldiers in more than 60 critical skills who extend their service by 12 months to 60 months, or more.
The Feb. 20 rates also feature an extensive shuffling of the eligibility categories for special skills and special critical cells.
For example, many of the staff sergeant and sergeant first class positions that previously qualified for a bonus have been eliminated from the charts that take effect Feb. 20.
While the Enhanced SRB program continues to feature a diverse menu of options for career-minded soldiers with 17 months to 14 years of service, funding is being sharply reduced as Army retention programs enjoy unprecedented success at a time of economic hardship in the civilian sector.
During the first four months of fiscal 2009, commanders and retention NCOs have re-enlisted 35,565 soldiers, which is 54 percent of the annual goal of 65,5000.
Pentagon sources expect that spending for bonuses this year will be at least $90 million less than in 2008, when $670 million was spent to re-enlist 75,000 soldiers.
Article: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/02/army_SRBcuts_021609w/
The Feb. 20 changes will update the Enhanced SRB rates that went into effect Jan. 1, and were sharply smaller than the bonuses available during the first three months of fiscal 2009.
That means soldiers who qualify for a bonus, and who are inclined to re-enlist, have until Feb. 19 to sign up for the more attractive rates that expire or are reduced Friday.
Most noticeable among the changes is the elimination of the “ETS” (expiration term of service) option that was targeted at soldiers whose current enlistments expire Sept. 30, the end of fiscal 2009.
This category features bonuses of $2,000 to $18,500 for soldiers in more than 60 critical skills who extend their service by 12 months to 60 months, or more.
The Feb. 20 rates also feature an extensive shuffling of the eligibility categories for special skills and special critical cells.
For example, many of the staff sergeant and sergeant first class positions that previously qualified for a bonus have been eliminated from the charts that take effect Feb. 20.
While the Enhanced SRB program continues to feature a diverse menu of options for career-minded soldiers with 17 months to 14 years of service, funding is being sharply reduced as Army retention programs enjoy unprecedented success at a time of economic hardship in the civilian sector.
During the first four months of fiscal 2009, commanders and retention NCOs have re-enlisted 35,565 soldiers, which is 54 percent of the annual goal of 65,5000.
Pentagon sources expect that spending for bonuses this year will be at least $90 million less than in 2008, when $670 million was spent to re-enlist 75,000 soldiers.
Article: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/02/army_SRBcuts_021609w/