ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

As the Army continues to modernize, it’s more important than ever that the service’s civilian employees keep pace with the right skills to support a force capable of multidomain operations.

“If you're an Army civilian, what I'll tell you is readiness is not all about Army units that are trained, equipped and manned to fight battles,” said Christopher Lowman, senior official performing the duties of Army undersecretary. “Army readiness applies to you and I just as much, because you play a critical role in developing the Army and making sure that they'll be successful.”

As the Army rolls out talent management initiatives across the force, it is also launching a sweeping plan to build a better future for its civilian workforce, senior leaders said. 

“People bring unique gifts to the Army,” E. Casey Wardynski, assistant secretary of the Army for manpower and reserve affairs, said Oct. 14 during an Army civilian forum at AUSA Now, the Association of the U.S. Army’s 2020 virtual annual meeting.

“And we want to put them in career fields where they have the maximum potential,” he said.

The Army needs talented civilians, and it should streamline how it brings them into the force, panelists said Oct. 16 during a forum at the Association of the U.S. Army’s Annual Meeting and Exposition.

"We need to shorten the hiring time and improve the acquisition of talent," said Carol Burton, director of the Civilian Human Resources Agency for the Army deputy chief of staff for personnel. Noting that the hiring process for civilians typically takes 180 days – during which time prospective candidates may go somewhere else – Burton said: "It's time to change."

The Army has reversed its decision to end a child care subsidy program for Department of the Army civilians.

Army Secretary Mark T. Esper on Feb. 28 “temporarily rescinded” a directive that would have barred civilian employees from enrolling in the Army Fee Assistance Program effective March 1.

“As a result, the Army Fee Assistance Program will continue to operate in accordance with the Army policy currently in place,” Lt. Gen. Bradley Becker, commanding general of the U.S. Army Installation Management Command, wrote in a memo.

Department of the Army civilians can no longer enroll in the Army Fee Assistance Program effective March 1.

The move is part of an effort to “prioritize resources to soldiers and their families,” Lt. Gen. Bradley Becker, commanding general of the U.S. Army Installation Management Command, wrote in a memo.

The Army Fee Assistance Program helps eligible families cover child care costs by paying a monthly fee directly to the child care provider. The program is designed to help families who send their children to off-post child care centers because the centers on post are full.

An interim report from the National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service says unfamiliarity with the benefits, opportunities and realities of military service present an obstacle that could be addressed with a nationwide campaign.

In a year of study, including meeting with a broad cross section of Americans, the commission headed by former U.S. Rep. and retired Army Brig. Gen. Joseph J. Heck discovered, as military recruiters have found, many service-aged youths don’t know much about the military and don’t know anyone who has served.

Seven Army civilians were honored at a Dec. 13 leadership summit in Washington, D.C., for their accomplishments in the 2018 Presidential Rank Awards.

Three Army civilians are Distinguished Executive Recipients. They are:

Nominations are due Dec. 30 for the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation’s 2019 Citizen Honors awards, a program in which military heroes identify courage and self-sacrifice in others.

Award winners will be announced on March 25, 2019, which is National Medal of Honor Day.

The Trump administration nominee to be the Army’s top personnel official says more flexibility is needed in how the Army classifies and pays its civilian workforce.

Casey Wardynski, a retired Army colonel who served from 1995 to 2010 as director of the Army Office of Economic and Manpower Analysis, told the Senate Armed Services Committee in written testimony that having a “modern, agile, information-advantaged Army requires a motivated, diverse and highly skilled civilian workforce.”