Navy updates policy regarding assignment of pregnant sailors to shore duty

A new policy seeks to help pregnant sailors keep their careers on trackPhoto byNavy

Navy authorities claim this new policy will provide sailors more career options while they start families by allowing them to be transferred to critical shore job openings if they become pregnant while serving at sea.

A new naval administrative message (NAVADMIN) was released on Tuesday that clarifies a policy update that allows pregnant sailors serving on sea duty to take on shore duty billets for a minimum of two years. This will allow them to access proper medical care while still keeping their naval careers on track.

While speaking with reporters in November, Navy Personnel Command head Rear Adm. Wayne Baze expressed his desire for a Navy where sailors can have families without sacrificing their successful military careers.

"I'll guide you through a typical detailing procedure to find a shore assignment that will allow you to grow professionally and personally, as well as provide you with an opportunity to serve in a gapped billet where the Navy needs your assistance," Baze further explained.

Pregnant sailors were previously moved to shore duty billets according to the availability of assignments near their existing duty station, according to Baze.

According to Baze, sailors are now allowed to transfer from one command to another, even from San Diego to Norfolk, if a crucial shore duty billet becomes available at another command.

Baze reports that the policy shift is in line with other Navy quality of life initiatives, and that the previous policy failed to adequately address the issue of sailor preferences when it came to filling important billets with individuals who possessed the appropriate qualifications.

Baze stated that the new policy gives military members a variety of choices about their allocated locations. So it's a two-way street. Where an individual is sent for shore duty is dependent upon both the Navy's requirements and their personal preferences. Depending on the proximity of healthcare facilities and social services, geolocation becomes crucial.However, we are striving to secure meaningful employment for the sailor.

In addition, the policy states that sailors who get pregnant while on shore duty and are still within thirteen months of their scheduled rotation date have the option to stay on the same assignment for another year or choose an other vital billet opening in their neighbourhood.

"It creates a stable environment for both the child's caregiver and the future command, ensuring that they can meet the needs of the command for a very long time," Baze explained. "And that allows us greater leeway when it comes to transferring them to different locations."

If the sailor, their commanding officer, and their healthcare practitioner all agree to it, sea duty commands can ask for an Operational Deferment waiver to let sailors stay on the job during pregnancy and the postpartum period.

A sailor's pregnancy tour orders will be revoked and they will remain onboard their present activity until their projected rotation date if they suffer from a miscarriage or stillbirth and have not executed shore instructions, according to the policy.

The NAVADMIN warned that returning to duty before fully healed from perinatal loss poses a considerable danger to sailor readiness. "Sailors who suffer a miscarriage or other form of perinatal loss may be eligible for convalescent leave under the supervision of a medical professional in accordance with established protocols."

In November, there were about 14,000 billets gapped ashore in the Navy. Nevertheless, according to officials, those figures are subject to frequent fluctuations due to permanent station changes, ships being decommissioned, or ships entering a maintenance availability.

Edited by Newsbreak Contributor Denys Shybinskiy