USA: Second Phase of Enlisted Retention Board Adjourns

The second phase of the Enlisted Retention Board (ERB) adjourned and forwarded its recommendations to Navy Personnel Command (NPC), officials said Oct. 27.

ERB Phase II results will be released after the Bureau of Naval Personnel (BUPERS) reconciles the results and processes eligible conversion packages, according to Lt. Cmdr. Delmy Robinson, ERB communications project officer at NPC.

As announced in NAVADMIN 180/11, conversion applications were held until the board completed deliberations. Only those Sailors not selected for retention in-rate by the ERB will be considered for conversion into selected undermanned ratings for which they qualify. Conversion waivers will be granted based on the needs of the Navy. This process can take several weeks.

Once BUPERS reviews the recommendations for conversion opportunities, board results will be forwarded to the Chief of Naval Personnel for approval.

A conversion package is a second opportunity for ERB-affected Sailors to stay Navy, and BUPERS officials must carefully review all eligible conversion packages, according to Robinson. NPC received more than 2,000 conversion requests from ERB-eligible Sailors.

The Phase II ERB reviewed the records of ERB-eligible E-6 through E-8 Sailors from 31 overmanned ratings.

The board was charged with reviewing each candidate’s official military personnel file and any correspondence submitted by the member to identify the best-qualified Sailors to receive the finite number of retention quotas available.

Once the board results are approved, NPC will notify commanding officers so they may personally contact and provide counseling to each Sailor not being retained.

Sailors not selected for retention will have access to the Navy’s transition assistance management program and other benefits for members who are involuntary separated. The Enlisted Retention Board was designed to balance the force by retaining Sailors in the right mix of ratings and paygrades, as well as experience and skills.

[mappress]
Source: navy, November 02, 2011