source GAIA package: Sx_MilitaryTimes_M6201010012290325_5675.zip Origin key: Sx_MilitaryTimes_M6201010012290325 imported at Fri Jan 8 18:18:04 2016
One month after Navy officials paid a one-time clothing allowance to 45,435 sailors who were shorted on money to buy the Navy working uniform, there’s still confusion in the fleet over who rates the money.
Navy officials confirmed that all those initially identified as eligible were paid in their Nov. 15 paychecks.
But in NAVADMIN 358/10, which announced the payments Oct. 29, officials said anyone else “who is entitled to this payment” but who wasn’t identified by the Navy as eligible could appeal.
The message did not specifically spell out that the Navy is considering appeals only from sailors who entered boot camp between Oct. 1, 2007, and April 26, 2009. These sailors, the Navy contends, were not issued NWUs and also missed out on the larger clothing allowance.
As a result, just five of the 153 appeals received by the Navy have been granted, said Capt. Bill Park, who handles officer force plans and policy for the chief of naval personnel.
“Two appeals were paid on Nov. 15, two appeals on Dec. 15 and one appeal [is] to be paid on 31 December to the sailor’s account,” Park said. “The approved appeals account for 3 percent of the total submitted and [are] less that 0.01 percent of the 45,000 total identified for payment.”
The remaining 148 appeals were rejected. Of those, 125 were from sailors not within the eligibility dates; two were from officers; and 11 who appealed had already been discharged. Out of the remaining 10, seven ended up being on the list anyway and the other three were drilling reservists, who don’t get a clothing replacement allowance.
The amount of the allowance depends on when that sailor entered boot camp. The 29,251 sailors who entered between Oct. 1, 2007, and Sept. 30, 2008, were paid $368.19. The remaining 16,184 who entered between Oct. 1, 2008, and April 26, 2009, received $524.35.
Though the Navy insists that only those who fall within in those dates will be considered for the pay, Navy Times has heard from 12 sailors who entered boot camp before the window, graduated during it, did not receive their new uniforms and were told they weren’t eligible for the allowance.
As of press time, officials with the chief of naval personnel’s office could not say why those sailors were not eligible for the allowance.
Second chance for appeal
Navy Times has asked the Navy for an accounting of why these sailors, who entered during fiscal year 2007, aren’t eligible, though as of press time officials unable to respond to that query.
If you lose your initial appeal to the Navy regarding the one-time clothing allowance, you can take your case Still, Navy officials say, there’s another way to appeal and that’s to the Defense Finance and Accounting Service — the people who cut the paychecks for the military. Contact Sailors can contact DFAS customer service at 888-332-7411 and ask that your their pay file be scrubbed to determine whether you they are authorized to receive the additional money.
