A recent U.S. Navy policy change gives pregnant sailors assigned to sea duty better reassignment options, while helping fill vacancies ashore, the service said. (U.S. Navy)
Pregnant sailors serving at sea now have more say in the jobs they get when reassigned to shore duty, the Navy recently announced as part of a policy change.
Under the update, pregnant sailors will fill ashore assignments that best fit their skills and the service’s needs for a minimum of two years, according to a Navy administrative order that took effect Tuesday.
The change also gives the sailors more discretion in choosing their reassignment location. Previously, pregnant sailors on sea duty were transferred based on open ashore jobs near their current assignment.
“This keeps a sailor on their career track with meaningful and challenging assignments while also meeting critical needs the Navy has for their knowledge, skills, and abilities,” the service said in a fact sheet posted to the official MyNavy HR website the same day.
The policy change allows the service to fill roles ashore that otherwise would remain open.
There are about 5,500 pregnant or post-partum sailors in the Navy, which is consistent with historical averages. About 10% of those sailors are assigned to sea duty, the Navy told Stars and Stripes on Thursday.
In November, the Navy had about 14,000 open, or gapped, positions ashore. That number fluctuates due to operational adjustments such as permanent changes of station and ship decommissionings, service officials told Navy Times on Wednesday.
Sailors already serving ashore who are within 13 months of a projected rotation may have that date extended, or they may move locally to fill a vacancy, according to the fact sheet.
The policy also allows pregnant sailors serving at sea to remain in their assignments with the approval of their commanding officer and health care provider. Sea and shore commands can apply to be exempt from accepting pregnant sailors if the job is hazardous, the Navy said.
Shore orders will be canceled for service members at sea who experience a miscarriage or still birth.
Those sailors will continue to serve their full assignment at sea. But they will be granted convalescent leave with guidance from their medical provider, according to the Navy fact sheet.
The update follows several recent changes to reproductive health care policies across the services.
In February, the Navy updated its policy following a Defense Department initiative that allows service members to delay notifying their commanding officers of a pregnancy until up to 20 weeks of gestation, except in the case of certain medical and occupational health hazards, or other special conditions.
The change also prohibits DOD health care providers from notifying a sailor’s command of a pregnancy until the 20th week, with the same exceptions.
