Can I reduce a new Soldier for inefficiency? | AskTOP.net – Leader Development for Army Professionals

Can I reduce a new Soldier for inefficiency?

A Soldier recently joined the unit a couple of months ago. In that brief time, she has managed to mess up or break just about everything she has touched. We've implemented corrective training again and again. Unfortunately it appears that she is flatly unable to perform her job. How do I go about reducing this Soldier for inefficiency?

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First you will have to wait until the Soldier has been in the unit for 90 days. See AR 600-8-19 paragraph 10-6:

A Soldier must have served in the same unit for at least 90 days prior to being reduced one grade for inefficiency.

After that, you need to make sure you have all your documentation together. If you haven’t been counseling often, start doing it now. You need to document what corrective training has been conducted as well as the outcome. Be sure to fill in the assessment blocks on these statements. You must show documented efforts to help the Soldier improve.

Here is an extract from AR 600-8-19

a. A Soldier must have served in the same unit for at least 90 days prior to being reduced for inefficiency.
b. The CDR initiating the reduction action will present documents showing the Soldier’s inefficiency to the reduction authority. This may include:
(1) Statements of counseling and documented attempts at rehabilitation by chain of command or supervisors.
(2) Record of performance, acts, conduct, or negligence during the period concerned.
(3) Correspondence from creditors, attempting to collect a debt from the Soldier.
(4) Adverse correspondence from civil authorities.
c. Documents will establish a pattern of inefficiency rather than identify a specific incident.
d. Reduction for inefficiency will not be used for the following:
(1) To reduce Soldiers for actions for which they have been acquitted because of court-martial proceedings or civil proceedings.
(2) In lieu of UCMJ, Article 15.
(3) To reduce a Soldier for a single act of misconduct.
e. The CDR reducing the Soldier will inform him or her, in writing, of the action contemplated and the reasons. The Soldier will acknowledge receipt of the memorandum by endorsement and may submit any pertinent matter in rebuttal.
Any matter submitted by the Soldier must be considered by the reduction board and reduction authority prior to rendering a decision.

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Mark is a Retired Command Sergeant Major with 26 years of military leadership experience. He held 3 military occupational specialties (Field Artillery, Nuclear Weapons Tech, and Ammunition Ordnance). Mark is one of the leading military authors in the fields of leadership, counseling, and training.

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  • Jo B. Rusin

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    Before you get to the point of having to reduce the Soldier for inefficiency, you might want to talk with her former boss at her last assignment. Was she able to do her job there or did they also have problems with her? If you have done everything you can as a leader to correct the behavior, there is a chance that something else is going on. For example, it is possible that she may be having family problems, experiencing PTSD symptoms, or be pregnant. Consider referring her to mental hygiene, the chaplain, or to the medical clinic for evaluation. Exercise all your options before you take final action and lower the boom.

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