Leaders usually cannot backdate a counseling statement.
A counseling statement should reflect the date of the actual counseling. However, a written counseling can reference a previous verbal counseling. Let’s say you were verbally counseled on 2 Nov. Your squad leader may give you a written counseling statement on 10 Nov that states:
“On 2 Nov I verbally counseled you about… I am recommending…”
This would be acceptable as long as the counseling is dated 10 Nov. The counselor is being clear that the counseling is referencing a previous incident.
If the squad leader wrote the counseling statement on 10 Nov and asked you to date the counseling statement 2 Nov, it is a different story. If the intent is to deceive or fudge the truth, it is unacceptable. I recommended annotating your disagreement in the closing block.
This situation usually becomes a problem with promotion counseling. Sometimes a leader will miss the deadline for conducting promotion counseling and will want to backdate the counseling. This is unacceptable as it puts the Soldier at a disadvantage. Simply disagree and write your comments in the closing block.
Comments
Jake Brown
Are you going to post again anytime soon?
Preston
Jake,
Mark posts on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Check out the “New Posts” area on the homepage or follow us on Twitter or Facebook for the latest. Thanks for your interest!