Injured Soldier To Keep Bonus
Philadelphia Inquirer
November 23, 2007
Injured Soldier To Keep Bonus
By Associated Press
MOUNT LEBANON, Pa. - A former Army private whose injuries in Iraq forced him to leave the military before his enlistment period ended will not have to repay a portion of his sign-up bonus after initially being asked to do so by the Army.
In a statement Wednesday, the Army said former Pfc. Jordan Fox "inadvertently" got a letter asking him to repay $3,000 of his enlistment bonus. Army officials said they are checking to see whether other injured soldiers have been told to repay their bonuses, too.
The statement came after Fox appeared on local and national TV and radio shows to talk about the letter.
Soldiers who are injured or become ill while on active duty can keep all sign-up bonuses due them, the Army said. But the Army hasn't decided whether to pay Fox his unused leave, Army spokesman Maj. Nathan Banks said.
Fox, 21, of Mount Lebanon, a Pittsburgh suburb, was partially blinded in his right eye and also suffered a back injury in a roadside bomb explosion in Baquba in May. He returned to the United States two months later and received a discharge from the Army.
In late October, Fox got a letter from the Army seeking repayment of part of his enlistment bonus because he had only completed about a year of his three-year service. Another letter arrived a week later warning that he could be charged interest if he didn't make a payment within 30 days.
"I was just completely shocked," Fox said. "I couldn't believe I'd gotten a bill in the mail from the Army."
Army officials said they don't know how many other soldiers may have faced similar situations.
U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire (D., Pa.) said he found out about the problem when a presidential commission on veterans issues this year reported that the Army stops bonus payments once a soldier is wounded.
"I think if you go into combat and you serve this country bravely and you're injured in combat, you have fulfilled your obligation," Altmire said.
Fox said his sight has improved, but he still has back pain. He helps his family run Operation Pittsburgh Pride, a volunteer group that has sent 4,000 care packages to troops in Iraq.
"I'm fortunate," Fox said. "I have both arms and both legs. A lot of people aren't that lucky."
November 23, 2007
Injured Soldier To Keep Bonus
By Associated Press
MOUNT LEBANON, Pa. - A former Army private whose injuries in Iraq forced him to leave the military before his enlistment period ended will not have to repay a portion of his sign-up bonus after initially being asked to do so by the Army.
In a statement Wednesday, the Army said former Pfc. Jordan Fox "inadvertently" got a letter asking him to repay $3,000 of his enlistment bonus. Army officials said they are checking to see whether other injured soldiers have been told to repay their bonuses, too.
The statement came after Fox appeared on local and national TV and radio shows to talk about the letter.
Soldiers who are injured or become ill while on active duty can keep all sign-up bonuses due them, the Army said. But the Army hasn't decided whether to pay Fox his unused leave, Army spokesman Maj. Nathan Banks said.
Fox, 21, of Mount Lebanon, a Pittsburgh suburb, was partially blinded in his right eye and also suffered a back injury in a roadside bomb explosion in Baquba in May. He returned to the United States two months later and received a discharge from the Army.
In late October, Fox got a letter from the Army seeking repayment of part of his enlistment bonus because he had only completed about a year of his three-year service. Another letter arrived a week later warning that he could be charged interest if he didn't make a payment within 30 days.
"I was just completely shocked," Fox said. "I couldn't believe I'd gotten a bill in the mail from the Army."
Army officials said they don't know how many other soldiers may have faced similar situations.
U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire (D., Pa.) said he found out about the problem when a presidential commission on veterans issues this year reported that the Army stops bonus payments once a soldier is wounded.
"I think if you go into combat and you serve this country bravely and you're injured in combat, you have fulfilled your obligation," Altmire said.
Fox said his sight has improved, but he still has back pain. He helps his family run Operation Pittsburgh Pride, a volunteer group that has sent 4,000 care packages to troops in Iraq.
"I'm fortunate," Fox said. "I have both arms and both legs. A lot of people aren't that lucky."
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Woops, it got out in the news... Yea, um that was a mistake... yep that's right. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by LKB3rd
Woops, it got out in the news... Yea, um that was a mistake... yep that's right.
LK,
The thing about the DoD is that because of its massive size, some administrative functions (ie. a pre-determined rule for bonus awarding and recovery) often slip through the cracks in an effort to retain some form of efficiency.
I am not an admin person, but what I suspect happened was the left hand (the NCO/Officer assigned to help this soldier transition out of the Army as a Wounded Warrior) forgot to "click" a computer entry which says something along the lines of "If soldier received bonus, and was wounded thus negating the contract, click block 1".
Instead, I imagine they inadvertently skipped that step so when the soldier left the service, another admin section looked at a screen which showed a soldier who received a bonus had departed the service before fulfilling his contractual obligation, and thus negated the terms (and money) associated with said contract. He/she probably clicked button 3 which said "garnish soldiers wages for $$$$$ amount of money until bonus total is recovered."
I know that's the long version of events, but in short what I'd like you to know is that the Army is not all "Fo*^#d-up" and trying to screw warriors at every turn, as our wonderful media would have you believe.
IMHO, the Army in its basic design is nearly perfect. What I mean is our collective goals as an organization, which include the Army Values (Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage), our Mission Statement, and the very reason for our existence, are nearly perfect; albeit often times unattainable by each and every one of us uniformed service members.
So, at the end of the day, when someone says "The Army is screwed up, look at what it did", I run to her defense and say "No, it's not the Army that is screwed up, it is one particular individual, one cog in the wheel which has caused this problem, and as soon as we focus our efforts on finding that one cog in the wheel which is causing the problem, the sooner we can fix the problem", the thus make the Army a better place for us all.
I can assure you no NCO or Commissioned Officer deliberately took that wounded soldiers money. Unfortunately, our administrative software does not have the sensibility to realize the implications of their actions, and unfortunately, the Army is not large enough to have a human check each and every admin action before it goes final.
Sorry for the rant, I was just hoping to clarify this issue and now step off of my soapbox and step aside.
NS0 -
Sick.
Yet they'll pay a contractor 6 figures to go over there.[V]0 -
Jeez, Nightstalker, I never would have expected you to be a semi-apologist for this issue.
I don't believe it was a mistake by DOA, I think it was a POLICY.
It will be interesting to see if it is actually behind us.
Doug0 -
Doug,
I have known female commissioned officers who have walked away from the Army (usually due to the birth of a child) after graduating USMA (West Point) before their CONTRACTUAL obligation was complete, yet they did NOT have to pay the Army one red cent in return. The Army policy clearly states differently, however, once you involve humans the policy is subject to interpretation.
All I am saying about soldiers and their bonuses after being hurt is that the policy for recovering bonuses may have (and I suspect rightfully was) such that any soldier who failed to complete the hitch he accepted for the mega-bonus, owed that money back to "Uncle Sugar". Now that we are losing kids with bonuses due to warfighting, I suspect the policy will be re-written with a clasue which stipulates that "if a soldier with a signing or re-enlistment bonus is wounded/killed/disabled and may no longer serve in any capacity, the US Army will consider the bonus part and parcel of the benefit package to be granted to said soldier."
Again, I am not apologizing for the Army, because the "Army" doesn't truly do anything, it is the people in the Army which do things. I still refuse to believe any NCO or Officer willingly attemptedt o take the re-enlistment bonus from a combat wounded soldier. Perhaps that is just my naivety, but I stand firm in my conviction that the folks I serve with have more heart and common sense than to do something as clearly ridiculous as this.
Great talking to you Doug, congrats on the 10k posts.
NS0 -
I guess I'm just pretty cynical about organizations/groups - or individuals - that have the power to screw up people's lives.
I see from your comment, that you aren't really an "apologist"...I apologize (now, I am an "apologist").
It amazes me how large a part of my life GunBroker has become in the last year or so.
I'm pretty sure that the membership here has kept me from doing some stoopid things.
Thank you.
Doug0
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