SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (USTCNS) --- "So how long have you been in the reserves?"
US Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st class Dayne Ventura smiled at the question from Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs Charles L. Cragin. Cragin was at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois on April 15, 2000.
The Air Force Base is the home of the Joint Transportation Reserve Unit at US Transportation Command.
He was visiting reservists to discuss on-going issues and to observe JTRU, which is considered "a model" for other similar joint command units currently being established.
"These virtual joint reserve units that we are setting up are addressing specific issues and subjects that we currently don't have the manpower to address with the current force," Cragin said. "JTRU is the model we are using as we set up more joint units."
JTRU was established in 1990 to augment USTRANSCOM's mission. USTRANSCOM is the single manager of America's global defense transportation system.
USTRANSCOM's mission is to provide air, land and sea transportation for the Department of Defense in times of peace and war.
Today, the 200 JTRU members representing the five military services provide 25% of USTRANSCOM's watchstanding requirements.
"Reserves today are 50 percent of our total force," Cragin told JTRU members. "Over the years, we have significantly decreased our numbers on both the active and reserve side. But our requirements are going up, and more and more of those requirements are falling on reserves."
Cragin said the reserve force was originally designed to augment active duty forces when a major world war was underway. Noting the term "weekend warrior" is distasteful to him, he said the role of the reserves has changed significantly in the past 10 years.
"You are no longer the weekend warriors," Cragin said. "You are the "re-serves" because you aren't 'standing by' anymore. You are serving and re-serving on a regular basis."
During fiscal year 1999, reservists contributed 13 million man-days, the equivalent of increasing the current force by 25%.
"As our mission requirements increase, so will our dependence on the reserves," Cragin said. "We can't to it without the reserve and guard support."
The increased dependence on the reserve force has increased the pressure on employers to support that effort. Although 20% of the Selected Reserve force is employed by the federal government, they generate 25% of the complaints, Cragin said.
Cragin asked JTRU members to help employers understand the federal laws regulating reservists and their reinstatement rights. He also said JTRU members need to educate the non-military public about what reservists do when they are serving their reserve time.
"The reality is most people think reserve duty is a scam," Cragin said. "If you are a federal employee, all they see is that you get 15 more days of leave than they do. They don't understand what impact your service has on your families, the rest of your life or how important your expertise is to maintaining our current level of security and readiness."
Besides explaining to employees and colleagues what Reserves are doing, Cragin also encouraged JTRU members to communicate with their communities.
"That's where you have the most impact, telling your friends and neighbors about what you are doing," Cragin said. "Less than 10% of people between 18 and 65 years of age have any military experience these days. They have no understanding of what happens when you are working here or what you give up to serve your country."
Cragin estimates that 60% of employers today have members of the reserves or National Guard among their members. Recruiting and retaining service members is increasingly difficult these days because of the lack of unemployment.
"We need to build on the intrinsic incentives of one serving your country," Cragin said. "We know there's a level of commitment that comes with your choosing to be a reservist. And you can best tell that story."
"I've been in the reserves for 19 years and commute 400 miles from Huntsville, Alabama," Petty Officer 1st class Ventura continued while watchstanding at USTRANSCOM's Mobility Command Center April 15.
"And how does your employer feel about your reserve duty?" Cragin asked.
"Oh, my employer is very supportive," Ventura said. "He's a one star general in charge of the Army Comanche helicopter program and he understands what we do."
"Let's make sure other people develop that same kind of understanding," Cragin said.
