European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 20, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 2 the stars and stripes thursday february 20,1986 army seeks to reduce personnel imbalances in some skills under fast track program by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington the army May Force some soldiers to move to skills that have personnel shortages and deny them re enlistment if they refuse. Under a new test called fast track set to begin May i the army Hopes to lower the number of critically imbalanced skills those that Are More than 120 percent overstaffed or that arc less than 80 per cent staffed. To the fast track test cos primarily in grades e-4 and e-5 in certain Over strength jobs will be asked to retrain and move into shortage skills said  Cooley of the enlisted programs Branch of the army s office of the Deputy chief of staff for person Nel. A spokeswoman for the military personnel Cente said certain skills have been identified for inclusion in the fast track test but she said the list would not be released until the test program is coordinated Between the department of the army and its major commands. About 31 percent of the army s 367 Job skills Are considered to be critically imbalanced across All grades Cooley said. About 15,700 soldiers in grades e-5 through e-9 Are in those skills. Initially an mos will be identified and grades within the mos targeted Cooley said. He said sol Diers in those grades within that mos who Are eligible to be retrained will get a letter from the military personnel Center asking them to do so. Targeted soldiers within 90 Days of re enlistment will be allowed to do so Only if they agree to be re trained into a shortage skill Cooley said. Soldiers who Are not caring re enlistment will be Given 90 Days to Volunteer for retraining he said. At the end of that 90-Day period if the imbalance has t evened out then Well step in and involuntarily reclassify enough soldiers to balance the mos. Cooley said. What in comes Down to is that Well ask soldiers to reclassify first and then maybe Well have to Tell them to do it. The army has been asking soldiers in Over strength jobs to reclassify for two years. In fiscal 1984, the military personnel Center sent out about 12,400 let ters to soldiers asking them to retrain. About 3,500fiscal 1985, about 6,100 letters were sent oat. More than 1,100 soldiers agreed to retrain. The army has been making strides in its Long Battle to balance personnel Levels in its Job skills. Ten year Sago. Almost two thirds of the army s skill a jerks considered critically imbalanced. In june 1984, the figure was 55 percent it dropped to 31 percent in december. Cooley said officials Hope the fast track program will help reduce that  Cooley acknowledges that some soldiers May be forced to retrain in another skill perhaps one not of their choosing he said the army is emphasizing the positive aspects of the program. We re trying to Tell soldiers about the disadvantages of staying in voc strength skills he said. Basically you have a much better Chance of promotion if you re not in an Over strength  Cooley said that if test results Are favourable the program would be expanded in fiscal 1987. Date schedules Are available soldiers reminded to take skill qualification tests by Tony Nauroth Nuernberg Bureau Grafe Woehr Germany training officials responsible for making sure every Usa eur Soldier takes a skill qualification test Are concerned about those who Aren t getting the word on their testing Dales and consequently Aren t getting tested. Too Many soldiers Are not getting the word on when their testing window is  said Mai. Robert m. Butt chief of the 7lh army training come s training management div based in Grafe Woehr. He said the testing window is the time period when every Soldier in a particular military occupational specially must test. It s up to the Soldier to be prepared to take the test butt said. It s up to his Coic and commander to make sure he does take  but the ultimate responsibility is the individual s. All the goals of a Good Soldier can be thwarted if he does t do Well on set he said. Unless he s a Rock in the Road he should be asking hey Sarge when Are we testing " butt said. If he s not inter ested then he needs to look for a new place of  the set tests Are used to help deter mine who gets promoted and who gets advanced schooling both of which Are important to career advancement he said. In addition test results Are used by a com Mander to evaluate unit readiness and by the training and doctrine come to Mea sure How much value the army is getting for its training Dollar. The army tests the individual skills of its soldiers through the individual train ing and evaluation plan which includes the skill qualification test which tests a Soldier s knowledge of his Job. The common tasks test which measures a Soldier s ability to do the things All combat soldiers Are expected to do. The commander s evaluation which gives the Soldier s commander an Opportunity to let the army know How Well the Soldier is doing regardless of How he test. Some soldiers simply do not do Well on tests butt said but they All must take  butt said testing Date schedules should always be available through unit training cos and commanders his 64 training standards officers and ultimately. Us own office in Grafe Woehr. We feel we Are the last source of set and item information in Usa eur butt said. Prince Charles presents with Winston Churchill award Dallas a at a banquet fit for a King Britain Sprince Charles presented Texas billionaire and computer magnate h. Ross Perot with the Winston Churchill award late tuesday at the end of a Daylong visit to Dallas. In presenting the award to the 55-year-old businessman the Prince praised Perot As a Man of bold imagination pioneering pint and dynamic leadership attributes he said were exemplified by the Man in whose name the award was presented. Perot the founder of electronic data systems is the third person and the first businessman to receive theaward which was begun in 1981 and is Given to those who Best epitomize the British statesman s  is known for Luch ventures As his thwarted at tempt in.1969 to Fly into Hanoi Vietnam to give Ameri can prisoners of War medical supplies and Christmas Din ners. He also financed a successful 1979 Mission to Rescue two of his employees from an iranian prison. The Rescue became the subject of a Best Selling Book on wings of  presentation at a hotel was made at a banquet whose guests included first lady Nancy Reagan. The eve Ning featured caviar and crab meat veal and vegetables Anco plenty of  Dallas symphony orchestra the us. Manne drum and Bugle corps and the . Naval Academy glee club performed throughout the evening. Earlier in the Day the Prince toured a High technology Industrial Plant Ana ate lunch with City officials. The heir to the British throne who is travelling without his wife Princess Diana received a yellow Rose symbolic of Texas after touring Electra communications corp., a fiber optics manufacturing Plant. His trip to the Lone Star state is billed As a Dickoff for the Texas sesquicentennial the state s 150th anniversary Celebration of its Independence from Mexico. I seem to be becoming a professional sesquicentennial Ccle Brator Charles said during a luncheon speech at City Hall referring to his visit last fall to Australia s Victoria state to help celebrate its 150th anniversary. What have i done to deserve it am i that prematurely aged Charles intended to come to Dallas primarily to give Perot the award. But after hearing of the sesquicentennial he extended his trip to include three other cities and sesquicentennial related events. Before meeting about 90 Electra employees lined up outside the Plant tuesday morning the Prince visited with company officials. After the tour he met with company Board members and was presented a plaque bearing the sesquicentennial Emblem and a company logo. Charles received the Rose from Billye Chandler of fort Worth the wife of a contractor involved with Electra communications. Charles then travelled to City Hall to lunch with Mayora. Starke Taylor and other City officials. After lunch the crowd made three toasts to the health of president Reagan and Queen Elizabeth and to Texas. During his speech the Prince emphasized the importance of Trade and business Between Texas and Britain. He said he sympathizes with texans present predicament but being Texas i am sure someone will make some Money out of this situation Charles said drawing laugh Ter from the crowd. 6 the Prince arrived at Dallas fort Worth International Airport monday. He plans to go to Houston Austin and san Antonio before he travels to Palm Springs calif.,Friday. News update Mulroney urges acid rain fight Toronto up prime minister Brian Mulroney has called for a historic commitment by Canada and the United states to combat acid rain. If it s destroying our atmosphere and our lakes acid rain it s doing the same to you he said in a. Taped interview on Abc television. It s a Tran Boundary problem it s a common problem that can Only be solved by a historic commitment to work  acid rain caused primarily by Fulfur dioxide emissions destroys lakes and Plant life. The Issue is a major irritant in Canadian us relations. Canadians frequently complain that the bulk of emissions comes from is. Sources mostly coat Fadoil burning facilities. Tests show harm to livestock Bhopal India up _ tests on livestock exposed to leaking Gas from the Union Carbide pesticide Plant showed some animals suffered spontaneous abortions and chromosome damage an animal genetics and Breeding expert said. . Khan associate professor at the College of veterinary sciences and animal husbandry near Bhopal said clinical tests have been con ducted since May 1985 on 23 water buffaloes certified by authorities As having been exposed to Methyl is Cyanate fumes on dec. 3,1984. More than 1,700 people died from the Gas that spewed from the Plant owned by be Danbury  multinational and some 200,000 were injured in history s worst Industrial disaster. R idol