Stop Law?

[sgtblack82]

HI there.


I am a current service member in the guard, and have been in close to 5 years, I just joined a new unit with a conditional release, and have a 1 and 15 weeks left before I go IRR. Now, I its a good time for IRR to get deployed so, I probaly end up drilling the full three years. But my question is other then if the unit is under mob order can they slap a stop law on me? Please only answer this if you have experienced it are a recruiter or are in the same boat, I respect your help but need a factual direct answer.

[marine]

Its actually 'Stop Loss'.

When anyone joins any branch of the United States Military for the first time, they incur a minimum eight year total service obligation (some special jobs, such as pilot, can incur even longer service obligations). Whatever time is not spent on active duty, or in the active Guard/Reserves (you know, the ones who drill one weekend a month?), must be spent in the IRR, or "Individual Ready Reserves." Members of the IRR, don't drill, nor do they receive any pay, but they are subject to recall to active duty at any time during their time in the IRR.

For example, if someone joins the Army under a "two year enlistment," then gets out, he/she is subject to recall to active duty for another six years. If somone joins the Air Force for four years, and then separates, he/she can be recalled to active duty for four more years.

the authority for this is in paragraph 10a of the enlistment contract, which states:

If this is my initial enlistment, I must serve a total of eight (8) years. Any part of that service not served on active duty must be served in a Reserve Component, unless I am sooner discharged.

This is not part of STOP LOSS, although it is often assumed to be. This is part of the President's Reserve Call-Up Authority.


STOP LOSS, on the other hand, means extending a military person in the Guard or Reserves, or on active duty, beyond what their normal separation date would be. Those who join the military agree to this provision under paragraph 9c of the enlistment contract states:


In the event of war, my enlistment in the Armed Forces continues until six (6) months after the war ends, unless my enlistment is ended sooner by the President of the United States.

That, is the basis of STOP LOSS.

The Department of Defense maintains that the term "war" means anytime America's Armed Forces are engaged in hostile conflict, and not just "war declared by Congress." Would that stand up in court? We don't know yet, as STOP LOSS has never been challenged in court. However, there are eight Guard and Reserve troops who have banded together to file a class-action lawsuit against the Department of Defense for calling them to active duty, and then keeping them on active duty past their separation date, under the authority of STOP LOSS, so perhaps we'll soon find out.

I should mention here that STOP LOSS is not new. Political opponants of the President often refer to STOP LOSS as a "back-door draft," and act as if President Bush invented the policy.

Congress first gave STOP LOSS authority to the Department of Defense right after the draft ended. However, the military didn't use the authority until the 1990/1991 Gulf War, when Bush Senior imposed STOP LOSS on pretty much everyone in the military during the Gulf War. This STOP LOSS was later revised to include only those deployed, and individuals in certain critical job skills.

President Clinton imposed STOP LOSS at the beginning of the Bosnia deployment, and during the Kosovo Air Campaign. STOP LOSS was imposed for a brief period right after 9/11, and then again in 2002 and 2003.

The current STOP LOSS program only affects members of the active duty Army, the Army Reserves, and the Army National Guard, and only affects individuals who are either deployed or have been officially notified that they are scheduled for deployment. Such members are prevented from separating or retiring from the point of deployment notification, to (up to) 90 days following return from deployment.

[VTguard]

Yes they can put stop loss into effect if they need to keep numbers up. Sometimes the states delay ETS dates by using stop loss in order to manage attrition and help manage the retention rates on paper. This is usually done so that they don't have 20 soldiers getting out all in the same month. It's a numbers game and they like to get more soldiers in then they lose. The other reason they may initate stop loss is if a deployment is pending, and they don't want everyone getting out to avoid deployement. Have you heard word on your unit deploying anytime soon?

Staying in and finishing your time as a drilling member of the unit is better than going into the IRR because, like you said, it is easy for any unit (Active, Guard or Reserve) to pull soldiers from the IRR to backfill vaccancies for a deployment.