Edward Severson ⋅ Saint Paul, MN U.S. Army National Guard, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 20 years served

Richard
You have a very challenging yet exciting adventure ahead of you. I respectfully submit to you that you may want to consider not leaving early but to remain in for that 6 month period. During that 6 month period you will not only gain a clearer vision of where you are headed but take that time to understand where you've been. Your future employer will appreciate the fact that you will come better prepared to the civilian world by utilizing that 6 months prepping for civilian mode. As a civilian your interaction with co-workers, clients, vendors etc. will have a different feel and look than a Army dynamic. Be able to take your military skills and adapt them to excel in your future endeavors. The 6 month period can only help to get your mind around that rather than learn on the fly as you are in a already new environment. Look for that seamless transition as the new member of a organization while keeping the conversation focused on the team you are part of not the one you were part of. To the point of where you've been. Take that 6 months to scrub through all your files to insure everything is accurately documented everything from job descriptions, jobs performed, and any data or statistics that clearly demonstrates your contribution. This information builds a strong resume that may be needed in the future. Along with administrative functions scrub through your medical files and make sure anything that you thought was or should have been documented actually has been. Your future employer will understand you have to complete your first mission before moving on to the next.

India Hall ⋅ Richmond Hill, GA U.S. Army, Warrant Officer ⋅ 11 years served

Hi Richard what you're referring to is a voluntary separation for employment. It is a fairly simple packet in all actuality just requires a few pieces of documentation. If you give me your email address I can send you a sample packet, I process them quite often in my S1 as they are fairly popular. If you're looking to do it just know you're authorized PTDY up to 10 days as well as all of your leave. They want you to burn they all of your leave first or abbitate that you're looking to sale it. And you must have a letter from the employer staying your start date and salary/ hourly wage. I can explain more when I email you. Hope this helps.

Matthew Russell ⋅ Houston, TX U.S. Army, Sergeant ⋅ 6 years served

You will need to 4187 and get an O-6 or higher to sign off. Here's the criteria:

Employment-related separations: Soldiers of the Regular Army who are approaching their ETS, or expiration term of service, and who elect not to re-enlist or extend their service on active duty may request early separation 180 days in advance of the ETS for the purpose of accepting employment.

Applicants for early release must provide a written statement from their prospective employer indicating the job offered, whether it is full-time or part-time, the amount of the compensation, and whether that compensation will be salaried or hourly.

The statement also must indicate the start date of the employment, and how early separation from service will facilitate acceptance of the job offer, and how a delay would cause hardship.

The employment must be full time, and support the soldier's income requirements as indicated in the 12-month post-separation budget completed as part of the Transition Assistance Program.

Separation dates normally will be no earlier than 10 days before the employment start date. Approval authorities can extend the separation to 30 days if soldiers require additional time to relocate for employment.

Deborah Meyer ⋅ Columbus, OH Anthem, Inc. ⋅ 35 years experience

Richard: I spoke several months ago with Army TAP contact at Fort Benning and he indicated this could be a possibility...or at least a transition. I recommend speaking with local TAP contact.

Craig Gorham ⋅ Durham, NC Creative Management Staffing Services ⋅ 1 years experience

Richard,

When I was on active duty (unless it has changed) the only early release from active duty was if you were attending college and the date of your EAOS conflicted with the actual semester starting. C. Gorham, USN Ret 2002

RICHARD ANSAH ⋅ Fort Riley, KS U.S. Army, Sergeant ⋅ 6 years served

Thanks so so much to you all. I really appreciate your response..All the points are very well noted. I really do appreciate this.

Michael Davis ⋅ Princeton, WV U.S. Army, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 8 years served

My brother was granted something very similar to what you're talking about. It wasn't because of an employment opportunity though. He was near the end of his contract and the unit was preparing to deploy. And rather than keep him on the unit's books, they offered to let him out early so they could fill that slot with someone who would be there when they did deploy. So it wasn't something he asked for, but it does show that the CO has the authority to make it happen if the soldier agrees.