ASU and Class A's

<p>There is no justification for a Senior NCO that has not purchased the ASU.&nbsp; The 'official announcement' of the change was made in ALARACT 099-2011, dated 16 MAR 2011, but we have known it was coming since 2009.&nbsp; Yes, they are expensive but this is something you plan for and, if necessary, save $20 or $30 a month until you have enough money.&nbsp; I am not going to mention the clothing allowance because I don't want to get into the debate on whether that should be strictly for replacement of worn out equipment vs. purchase of completely new requirements (although I will refer you to AR 700-84, par 4-3 which states "for the cost of replacement AND PURCHASE OF NEW ITEMS").&nbsp; Bottom line:&nbsp; Senior NCOs and Officers&nbsp;(yes, I've seen a few CPTs and MAJs running around in greens) have no excuse.</p><p>I have had to purchase new PTs, ASUs, and ACUs all out of pocket over the past thirteen years to the tune of well over a thousand bucks.&nbsp; Yes, it sucks . . . now quit whining and go buy it! :)</p>

I wouldn't take the NCO/Soldier to the board if they showed up in Greens. The uniform is the first thing people see when you walk in that room, if you want to make a good impression show up in the updated uniform, which shows you are paying attention.&nbsp;IMHO, If you represent yourself in the old uniform it says that you cant manage your money (to include your annual clothing allowance) well enough to get the new one, or that you just don't care.

The green service uniform is equivalent to the blue service uniform. Should I also disregard a soldier's M-16A2 qualification since we now have M-4s? New does not mean better, and old does not mean obsolete. The adoption of the ASU is supposed to be a cost saving measure, and replacing a perfectly serviceable uniform prior to the wear out date is wasteful.<br><br>We were warned with the implementation of the ASU that soldiers would appear in a mix of uniforms. I simply cannot understand why leaders are so offended by green.<br>

While NCOs are still authorized to wear the Class A uniform, it does send a signal. &nbsp;As our Nations Army continues to downsize we are looking to retain those that are best qualified not just fully qualified. We are going to ask a great many fully qualified Soldiers who have performed successfully to go home. Purchasing the ASU not only sets an example for your peers and subordinates but also tells a promotion board that you have bought into the Army as a Career and are doing everything in your power to advance your career. &nbsp;When your record goes in front of a Senior Promotion board every little thing adds up and I can personally tell you that a DA photo in the ASU really stands out compared to the Class A uniform. &nbsp;

As a platoon sergeant I know who in my platoon has greens and who has ASUs. &nbsp;When I select a SPC to go to the promotion board if they have ASUs, the NCO will have ASUs. &nbsp;If they have greens, the NCO will have greens. &nbsp;They are still authorized and you cannot fault them for that. &nbsp;When I was at my SGT board I had ASUs and a lot of others had greens. &nbsp;The CSM straight up asked everyone why they didn't have ASUs. &nbsp;A question I got to dodge because I was in ASUs. &nbsp;The only thing that bothers me is when one person is wearing something and someone else is not. &nbsp;Pay day activities is the worst and I do want everyone to get ASUs.<div><br></div>

First let me start out saying that it would be nice if all Soldiers took pride and purchased the new uniform, we all would like that, but in saying that....I thought Leaders, especially NCO's, since it's in our creed are suppose to treat Soldiers FAIR and IMPARTIAL. It sounds cool to puff your chest out and say "I wouldn't send the Soldier to the board" or "I'd make the Soldier go out and buy the uniform", you have to be fair and impartial. A wear out date has been set for the 4th QTR of 2014, so any day before that the Soldier is within regulation, yes I said regulation; you know "<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 15 [login to see] 69727px;">a rule or directive made and maintained by an authority." so if you're not upholding the regulation then what's the sense of having one? You have to think and be smart about this, because if you deny a Soldier anything because they don't have the new uniform, that's an IG complaint all day every day, you can not treat that Soldier any other way than fair and impartial. Does it say something about the Soldier.....maybe, but how will you justify denying a Soldier anything when there is a wear out date in writing, all they have to do is refer back to that. I know a lot will not like what I said, but please let me know how will you defend your actions when legally you can't. I'm open to a mature discussion, I've seen some of these post get out of hand in the past.</span>

I would keep the perception in the back of my mind and never forget. In most cases, I believe outstanding leaders will stay abreast of changes, regardless of a wear-out date.

Bottom line, regardless of the wear-out date, if you're going to continue to wear Class A's instead of switching over to ASU's, just know that you're going to be perceived differently from everyone else. When your unit as a whole for whatever reason has to wear the dress uniform and you're the only person still wearing Class A's, from the outside looking in you're just going to be referred to as "that guy".

My perception would be my response: "That is not the uniform of someone who gets promoted ahead of their peers."
Then I would proceed to ignore him and board the Soldier. Some awesome Soldiers grew up under shoddy leaders.

I would be extremely embarrassed for him. Doesn't lead from the front. No excuse at all.