Comment

Comment by Mark on February 5, 2013 at 10:10pm

I'd be very curious to see a bona fide source for the idea that Rickover wanted qualified nucs to be CWOs.  I could see him pushing for nucs on their second (and subsequent) sea tour getting that promotion, though.  If every qualified nuc was a warrant officer, there would be nobody to do the tasks that every nuc spends a lot of time doing until they make chief.  The sailors who work in a space on a ship are the ones responsible for the grunt work done to maintain it; there is no way that they are going to bring junior people from other areas of the carrier or sub to do things like field day, painting, deck waxing and bilge cleaning that must be done.  The idea of making nucs CWOs has been a conversation topic of nucs on the midwatch or in b*tch sessions for many, many years, so it's not surprising if you've heard it from your son.  Rickover had a lot of unconventional ideas, but I think even he would have recognized that such a move would have created many, many more problems than it solved.  It's been interesting to watch this thread progress, but it's clear there is no shortage of propaganda coming back home from inexperienced nucs.  I don't want to belabor the point, but comparisons between the material nucs encounter in the Power School curriculum and any four-year engineering degree, let alone MIT and Harvard Law, are not remotely realistic.  They may compare in terms of pressure on many, but it is also true that about 10-15% cruise through Power School without being significantly challenged academically.

Comment by NAVY-em's_Mom on February 5, 2013 at 8:46pm

After a slight delay, due to failing the run:  my son will be on his way to Charleston as a nuclear EM.  I thought from the get go he would get EM, even though ET was his first choice....he just seemed like he was EM material!!

Comment by MOMofDREW2.0 on February 5, 2013 at 3:53pm

When EMs pass A school and they are E3s, are they promoted to E4?

Comment by William in Nashua on February 5, 2013 at 2:47pm

hk1853 they do get paid a moving expense for moving their own stuff that is calculated based on the weight of their car and the distance they drove.  They also get paid BAS and BAH (food- & housing allowance) since they are not living nor eating at prototype in Ballston Spa.

Comment by William in Nashua on February 5, 2013 at 2:44pm

Admiral Rickover originally wanted qualified nukes to serve as warrant officers, not as enlisted men.  Doing that would have solved a lot of problems. 

Comment by blackie123 on February 5, 2013 at 12:39pm

There may some resentment in the fleet but the respect that vets show once they find out my sailor is a Nuke makes a mom feel good!

Re moving out from base for prototype, I believe that they are required to have 3000.00 in savings to faciltate the move. I don't think they get relocation but will get a monthly living allowance. My two Nukes are staying in Goose Creek as well.

Comment by hk1853 on February 5, 2013 at 11:33am

Do nukes moving off base for prototype, but staying in goose creek get moving "relocation"?  Had heard they get about 1000?  Anyone confirm?  Ths!

Comment by kayinaz on February 5, 2013 at 11:30am

William, I was not insinuating that these young people do not deserve their advancement to E-4.  I 100% agree with the Navy's automatic advancement policy for specific rates. What I was attempting to explain - poorly obviously - is why nuclear power school graduates, along with other "push button" advancement rates have a bad rap with many other rates in the fleet. Most (not all) of the nuclear power graduates have very little leadership/supervisory experience. Some graduates have never been in a position where they are responsible for other peoples work.  That is not a fault of the person graduating, it is a result of the system.  The Navy does it's best to correct this situation with required leadership classes.  To use a similar civilian example - some fresh out of college graduates move straight into supervisory/management positions in the workplace and are placed in positions over personnel who have worked in a company for years.  Some people might be offended that the college graduate is getting paid more and is awarded a management position over the person who has worked their way up the ladder from the bottom but did not attend college. Some people believe that the person who worked their way up inside the company would have more experience at supervisor/management positions. Sometimes that attitude can lead to resentment in a workplace.  But that business degree graduate just spent 4 years in school/training for the management position they are being placed in and therefor presumably they deserve the extra pay and the position.  I'm not saying they deserve that resentment just explaining where it comes from.

Comment by William in Nashua on February 4, 2013 at 7:08pm

About that so-called push button rank that for nukes that somebody mentioned.  After these sailors have put two years of their lives in the Navy nuclear training program under the hardest and most stressful academic training in the U.S. armed services, does anyone really expect them to still be an E-3?  So in other words a person is obligating himself to 6 years of service and the making it through a program that drops a huge number of people who attempt it, in return for what ... nothing?  No advancement at all?  Advancement to E-4 is part of the enlistment contract they signed when they joined the Navy.

There are plenty of non-nuclear ratings that promote sailors to E-4 after A school and that requires maybe 2-3 months training.  If you just wanted to get to E-4 in a hurry there are far easier ways to get there than by the nuclear pipeline.

The only "push button" program for nukes is the STAR reenlistment which they are offered only after your have earned that nuclear NEC.  If sailors take reenlistment that they are obligating themselves to serve another 6 years active duty, for a total of at least 8 years active duty.   That is 8 years of your youth.  By the time nukes are offered that deal they are already at the 2-year mark and can test for E-5 on their own.

Again, they are offering a special perk to those who made it all the way through the pipeline, not just through A school and not just through power school.  If you did not make it all the way through the pipeline, well you did not earn the chance to take a STAR reenlistment.

Comment by B'sNukeMoM⚓️MMN(Vet) on February 4, 2013 at 5:29pm

Thanks kfquay - not sure what we are going to do yet, but since graduation is in April we know it will be a nice time of year to visit!  Crossing our fingers we can make it and grandma's want to come too since they didn't get to go to boot camp grad.  Sailor says it's not a big deal - just wait until Power school grad.....but again we keep hearing that the weather is nice in April......

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