ALCOAST 153/20 - APR 2020 CAMPAIGN TO RETAIN - SITREP 1

R 241707 APR 20
FM COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC//DCMS//
TO ALCOAST
UNCLAS //N01900//
ALCOAST 153/20
OMDTNOTE 1900
SUBJ:  CAMPAIGN TO RETAIN - SITREP 1
A. Military Separations Manual, COMDTINST M1000.4 (series)
B. Officer Accessions, Evaluations, and Promotions Manual, COMDTINST M1000.3 (series)
C. Enlistments, Evaluations, and Advancements Manual, COMDTINST M1000.2 (series)
1. I’m pleased to announce a new campaign to retain many of our talented Coast Guard
members in this time of uncertainty. It has been clear throughout the COVID-19
pandemic that workforce preservation enables mission readiness. As COVID-19 challenges the Coast Guard’s ability to recruit and train personnel, preserving today’s mission ready total workforce has never been more important, nor more challenging. As part of the Commandant’s “Campaign to Retain,” we are looking to voluntarily retain
members that were planning to leave the Service this year. There are opportunities
to continue service and to carry out our essential Coast Guard missions, particularly
for those in critical enlisted ratings and those officers in critical specialties.
If you are considering retention, please contact your assignment officer (AO), as
they are already starting to fill key positions and working to finalize assignments
by July 1. And if you still plan to leave active duty, consider joining the Coast
Guard Reserve in order to keep your options open.
2. For those in critical ratings and specialties intending to RELAD, TEMPSEP, or
voluntarily retire this year, contact your AO to discuss options based on your
specific individual and family circumstances. The rating force master chiefs and
silver and gold badge senior enlisted leader network can also help to assess your
options and connect you to PSC. Members in critical ratings not retained due to
High-Year Tenure (HYT) can reach out to their AO for assignment options -
retention decisions will be assessed based on service need and member record.
    a. Critical active duty officer specialties include: aviators, engineers,
marine inspectors, and cyber specialties.
    b. Critical active duty enlisted ratings include: BM, CS, ME, MK, OS, YN, and
ET (particularly with weapons system qualifications).
3. Enlisted members and officers NOT in a critical rating may also have some
opportunities to change separation dates or extend service contracts. If your
separation plans this summer have changed, we are ready to discuss flexible
career opportunities ranging from extending for a few months to support unit
readiness during a challenging PCS season to longer-term extensions on a
case-by-case basis.
4. Commanding officers, officers in charge, and supervisors:
    a. Engage your members immediately if they’re planning a voluntary release
from active duty, either imminently or in the coming year. The Coast Guard needs
to retain members with specific skill sets, especially in the junior paygrades –
both officers and enlisted – to include the Reserves. Help your shipmates who
intended to leave the Service make an informed decision. Members may face very
different circumstances today than when they made plans to separate from the
Service over the past year – your engaged leadership can create an opportunity
for them while meeting a critical Coast Guard need. If not on active duty, then
endeavor to retain talent in the Coast Guard Reserves. A Commanding Officer
retention tool kit is in development to help support those conversations.
    b. Members facing involuntary separation or retirement for misconduct,
disability, HYT or as a result of the senior enlisted continuation board may
not be candidates for long-term retention, but PSC is granting short-term
delays to these separations daily to facilitate required separation processing
that may have been impacted by COVID-19.
5. For members who have utilized the Temporary Separation Program (TEMPSEP),
OPM, EPM, and RPM are planning a webinar to discuss how you can expedite your
re-affiliation with the active duty. Please watch for additional details on
how you can participate in this first-ever TEMPSEP webinar.
6. Many of you still keep in touch with shipmates and friends who honorably
left active duty or SELRES in the last two years and are now professionally
impacted because of the pandemic. Engage with them. Ask them if they would be
interested in coming back to active duty or SELRES. Connect them with a local
recruiter or the In-Service Transfer Team directly to explore integration
opportunities.
7. Look for additional communications on the Campaign to Retain in the coming
weeks that will further describe opportunities to continue your service in
the world’s best Coast Guard.
8. VADM M. F. McAllister, Deputy Commandant for Mission Support, sends.
9. Internet release is authorized.