Pilot program to allow women & men to request military sabbatical

2014-01-12T12:35:59-05:00

A new pilot program allows both women & men a sabbatical from military service.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/01/12/sabbatical-program-may-help-us-military-keep-women-in-ranks/?intcmp=latestnews

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 12 at 2014 8:40 PM

2014-01-12T20:40:23-05:00

I think this would be a great program as many European countries offer a similar benefit. And given the numerous deployments we have faced over the past decade, this would allow a service member to take that much needed break in order to re0center them selves and come back to be an asset to the military instead of losing that wealth of experience and knowledge.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 13 at 2014 9:38 AM

2014-01-13T09:38:48-05:00

Very interesting ma'am. How would they work this? Would
they simply move that officer back a year group or two? That way the year off
doesn't count as time-in-grade towards their next promotion? I've seen them do
this with officer who have separated then returned after a few years in the civilian
sector.

Response by LTC Yinon Weiss made Jan 15 at 2014 8:23 PM

2014-01-15T20:23:01-05:00

I think this is a great idea. I knew many people who got out but may have opted for this instead and returned after a year. In general, the flexibility may offer the military more options to retain some of its top folks.

Response by Lt Col Luis A. Rojas made Jan 15 at 2014 9:13 PM

2014-01-15T21:13:40-05:00

Great idea for both women and men, I see a lot of benefits in boosting the quality of life for families.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2014 12:57 AM

2014-01-17T00:57:15-05:00

I was going to go off on a tangent about how this will apply only to Officers for two main reasons:

1) NCOs dont have ADSOs

2) there is not an excess of NCOs built into the system, so that other NCOs can go to school for a year or so, like there is for Officers.

But then I decided to simply ask this question: Do you really want to leave for a couple of years and come back older, more aches and pain, and now working for a guy/gal who used to be your peer? Personally, I have always been the cream, and I am not going to work for one of my peers. Nor am I going to let someone that I busted my butt to be better than, catch back up to me. If you need a break seperate yourself from the military and allow one of the young dedicated Soldiers to come to the front. Go teach college if you want to take a Sabbatical.

Response by GySgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2014 2:39 AM

2014-01-17T02:39:47-05:00

This year the Corps is allowing this to specific ranks and specified time in service and grade after a successful test the previous year.  I think it's good to go and was considering it myself!

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made May 15 at 2014 10:00 PM

2014-05-15T22:00:05-04:00

Certainly an interesting idea. What do they do for those 3 years, is there a minium of say 3 yrs in before they take the time off, what happens if they get fat and lazy during that time? It's a nice thought but I think it would be a disaster, too many variables.

Response by SSG V. Michelle Woods made Nov 3 at 2014 8:04 PM

2014-11-03T20:04:59-05:00

Can any retention NCOs shed some light on this program?

Response by Lt Col Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 21 at 2015 7:06 PM

2015-02-21T19:06:15-05:00

Response by LTC Jason Strickland made Aug 10 at 2015 7:47 AM

2015-08-10T07:47:05-04:00

I'm going to have to disagree with most of you on this thread ( Lt Col Private RallyPoint Member 1SG Private RallyPoint Member Lt Col Luis A. Rojas LTC Yinon Weiss and GySgt Private RallyPoint Member ).
This may sound harsh and many will likely disagree with me. This program is focused on retention - and we need creative mechanisms to keep our airmen - or any service for that matter. However, giving someone three years off to start a family, go back to school, etc. just isn't sound business practice. I would support this program if it were shorter duration (how about one year?) Furthermore, if there were contractual obligations, I would also consider this program - similar to the education requirements (i.e. for each year the military funds school, the service member owes three years back).
http://www.stripes.com/news/air-force-accepting-applications-for-sabbatical-program-1.361328

Air Force accepting applications for sabbatical program

The program allows airmen to take from one to three years off while retaining their military ID card, full medical and dental benefits and the right to return to active-duty status without losing their place in line for promotion.