445th AW commander holds civilian calls on possible furloughs

  • Published
  • By Stacy Vaughn
  • 445th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  More than 200 445th Airlift Wing air reserve technicians and civilians attended two 445 AW civilian commander's calls March 26 in the 89th Airlift Squadron auditorium.

The focus of the meetings was to prepare the wing for the anticipation of possible furloughs and the potential actions if sequestration goes into effect next month.

Col. Stephen Goeman, 445th AW commander, provided information on how sequestration will affect the wing and answered questions from concerned attendees on what's going to happen if furloughs are handed down.

"Nobody is exempt here at the 445th.We're all in the same boat - there will be no special deals. Everybody will be working a standard 8-hour day, four days a week," Goeman said.

Sequestration, signed into law as part of the 2011 Budget Control Act, is a package of mandated cuts to the federal budget, totaling some $1.2 trillion over 10 years of which some $85 billion takes effect in fiscal 2013.

Goeman told the audience if furloughs are initiated, the wing will have "Furlough Fridays." Individuals who are used to staying an hour or so after work to finish a project are going to be ordered to go home because overtime, comp time and credit hours will not be allowed.

"The best solution for us is to shut down once a week. Fridays work best with our wing. You can't get anything done if 20 percent are off on Tuesdays and 30 percent off on Wednesdays. For our wing, it just wouldn't work," Goeman said.

The commander said he doesn't expect everyone to get the job done when under furlough because "it just cannot happen." He brought up the fact that some individuals are already working more than a standard 8-hour shift to get the job done. Keeping everyone working no more than an 8-hour shift will make meeting current deadlines unattainable.

"There's no way you can do 100 percent of the job with only 80 percent of the time allowed. Operate safely and don't cut corners. If the tasking doesn't get done, it doesn't get done," Goeman said.

If Congress does not act on sequestration, most Department of Defense civilian employees will be furloughed without pay for up to 22 non-consecutive days - one day per week starting in early May through the end of the fiscal year. That amounts to 20 percent loss of pay and associated financial hardships for approximately 400 445th ARTs and civilians.

But in the meantime, it's business as usual. "We can't slow down because of 'what might happen.' We have to continue to go forth 100 percent. When it comes time and the furlough kicks in, then we'll reassess the situation and go from there," Goeman said.