Keep drilling until you officially receive your TIR orders

One problem many Troop Program Units (TPU) face is the non-participating soldier. These are soldiers, who are supposed to drill, who are not drilling. This list tends to grow until it negatively impacts readiness and overall unit numbers.

While they are absent, these soldiers’ medical status turns amber and then red. They end up behind on the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT). These soldiers show delinquency in Structured Self-Development (SSD) and other administrative requirements.

Many of these soldiers think they are in the TIR. More soldiers join their ranks who also think they are in the TIR. Their numbers collectively increase and work against unity. Now the commanding officer, command sergeant major (CSM), first sergeant (1SG), retention petty officer, and unit personnel feel “fire” on their necks from higher echelons.

What is being done to address the “carpet bombings” caused by non-participating soldiers?

This has reached the point where there is a growing drive to purge these soldiers. Although the regulation has an IRR transfer as an option, the fate that awaits these soldiers is worse. These soldiers are seeking automatic downgrades to E1 and a discharge “other than honorable” (OT H).

Previous medical, educational, and fitness statuses are not updated. Soldiers requiring status updates think they are in the IRR. Unfortunately, for many of them, they are still TPUs.

This is an issue that affects multiple units in the Army Reserve. More importantly, soldiers who do not participate do not realize that their lack of participation is turning into something negative that will follow them for the rest of their lives.

The biggest problem is the misconception surrounding TPU transfers to another state.

Many units tell their IRR pack soldiers that they don’t have to practice. The package is lost or not processed due to lack of documents. The soldier’s TPU requirement carries over from his 6-year mark to the end of his Military Duty Obligation.

Consequently, soldiers remain in the book of a unit. As their numbers increase, so do the administrative tasks required for the unit. These problems are mounting as more and more soldiers end up in “limbo” as a result of the loss of their IRR packets.

An obvious solution to avoid this is to require transfer soldiers to continue drilling until transfer orders are received.

Therefore, if a soldier is waiting to be transferred to the IRR, the soldier must continue to practice after the IRR packet is shipped. This gives the soldier an incentive to continue tracking the AU to ensure the package is created and forwarded.

Additionally, Soldiers awaiting approval of their IRR package must still attend massive medical events. They remain accountable to the unit for their own medical, dental, structured self-development (SSD), etc. state. If a soldier continues to practice, until he receives his orders, many of those statuses will be updated.

Soldiers should call medical readiness to update their LHI status.

One of the greatest benefits for the soldier, who continues to drill, is that he accumulates the payment of the assisted drills. The soldier also receives retirement points for these exercises. This means fewer correspondence courses required for the current retirement year.

While in TIR, the soldier remains responsible for achieving a minimum of 50 retirement points each retirement year.

The requirement to drill until orders are received applies to other types of transfers.

If a soldier sends a retirement package, that soldier must continue to practice until their retirement orders are posted. The date on the withdrawal orders will indicate to the Soldier when his withdrawal will be effective.

If a soldier is submitting a package for transfer to the Individual Mobilization Augmentee (IMA), that soldier must still perform exercises. The soldier continues to drill until the date indicated in the IMA orders, as the soldier is at the IMA.

Transferring to another location?

If you have a TPU contract, the requirement to drill still exists even after a move. The unit is supposed to send you a letter authorizing you 90 days to find a local unit to drill with. After those 90 days, you need to pierce.

Ideally, you should be drilling before those 90 days are up. Without this card, you will need to find a unit to pierce immediately.

Soldiers moving to another area of ​​the country must “drill” with one of the units at their destination. They must do this until the orders are officially transferred to the destination unit.

Prepare a DA 1380 to document the drill you did with the other unit. Send this DA 1380 to the drive manager of the drive you are transferring from. They need this form to process their payment.

If there are no Army Reserve units within the destination area, or within a reasonable driving distance, then a transfer to the TIR could be a solution.

Advice:

1. Continue drilling until you receive your TIR orders. This is applicable for other types of TPU transfers, such as transferring to the withdrawn reserve. You remain a TPU soldier until the date indicated in those orders.

2. Call the manager of the unit that is working on your transfer package at least once a week. One call where you leave a message is not enough. You have to speak to this unit manager to see if you need to do anything to complete your package. After your package is shipped, use these calls to track the status of your package.

3. If you learn that you are moving to another part of the country, speak with the professional counselors who serve your reservation center. They can talk to your counterparts stationed near the area you are moving to. This can help speed up your transfer process.

4. As long as you have a TPU contract, you are expected to practice every month and complete annual training. This is applicable even if you transfer to a new area.

5. If your paycheck shows payments for SGLI, you will accumulate a debt to the government for your SGLI premium during the months that you do not drill. This will continue to accumulate while in a TPU state. Continuing drilling, until your orders arrive, helps ensure that you don’t have to pay for this in the future.

6. Check your medical readiness status. As of this post, the status is available from AKO.