New step in the process to end stop-lossBy Jim Tice - Staff writer
Posted : Sunday Nov 29, 2009 8:58:47 EST
Some Regular Army enlisted soldiers soon will be told to either deploy or leave service as the Army phases out the controversial and unpopular stop-loss program.
Soldiers who do not re-enlist or extend will be subject to the rules of a new program approved by Army leaders in mid-November. Under the Enlisted Involuntary Early Separation Program, in some cases soldiers may be involuntarily separated before their expiration term of service, or ETS.
As announced last spring, stop-loss restrictions will not apply to active-component units that deploy to Iraq, Afghanistan and other contingency areas after Jan. 1.
The elimination of stop-loss across the Army’s three components began Aug. 1 for deploying Army Reserve units, and Sept. 1 for the Army National Guard.
A recent accounting of the stop-loss program shows that 372 Army Reserve, 3,930 National Guard and 4,818 Regular Army members, for a total of 9,120 soldiers, are serving with deployed units beyond their contracted service end dates.
REst of article at:
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/11/army_deploy_or_leave_112809w/