Less Expensive Internal Management Options May be Viable Alternatives for Countering Critical Military Skill Shortages.

摘要

Service representatives have voiced the concern that they have experienced, are experiencing, and will continue to experience shortages of enlisted personnel possessing certain needed 'critical skills.' The Air Force is taking measures to at least temporarily relieve the shortages certain policies have aggravated by: Restructuring grade authorizations in all occupations to make them more self-supporting; Temporarily modifying the promotion policy to increase the percentage of promotions in the most critically short occupations; Increasing and targeting retraining efforts to move surplus airmen to the most critically short occupations and at the lowest grade possible; Intensifying prior service recruiting to more quickly eliminate shortages of mid-level noncommissioned officers in selected shortage occupations; Selectively allowing personnel possessing needed shortage skills to continue service beyond normal retirement points; Returning to selected critically short occupations qualified personnel who are presently performing other duties. DOD and the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps have agreed that many skill shortage problems can be alleviated by modifying personnel policies and pratices, and that monetary incentives alone should not be relied on to resolve shortages. They emphasized that monetary incentives are essential ingredient which must be used in conjunction with other management initiatives in resolving skill shortages.