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DLA transition team holds first town hall meeting

  • Published
  • By Darren D. Heusel
  • Tinker Public Affairs
TINKER AIR FORCE BASE --  Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency officials held their first of two scheduled town hall meetings Nov. 7 here in an effort to bridge communications with members of the Tinker work force who will ultimately be affected by a transfer of function early next year.
   As part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission's decision to realign the supply, storage and distribution process at all depot-level maintenance facilities, 365 of the 555 civilian positions within the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center's 776th Maintenance Support Squadron, one of Defense Supply Center Richmond, Va.'s largest customers, will transfer in place to DLA on Feb. 3.
   Those positions will remain at their current location, but will be managed by DSCR, DLA's aviation demand and supply chain manager.
   The town hall meeting, held at the Tinker Base Theater, was met with guarded optimism as most of the 776th MSS workers in attendance were seeking answers to questions ranging from fitness time to potential job loss and everything in between.
   In the end, however, DSCR commander Brig. Gen. Andrew E. Busch and other key personnel from both organizations were able to successfully answer most of the questions and give the near capacity crowd what they came for.
   "I understand the importance of your mission to the depot world," said General Busch, who spent two years at Tinker working in the old Propulsion Directorate and nine years total in Air Force Materiel Command before transferring to DLA.
   "The bottom line up front is that this BRAC implementation must be successful," General Busch added. "I can tell you that this BRAC scenario is not focused on a manpower reduction."
   The general went on to say his focus is on implementation and ensuring a smooth transition, adding, "We will count on you (affected workers) to help shape the future of Air Force logistics."
   "You have a proven history of implementing Lean concepts on the shop floor," he said. "DLA does not have that history, so I will be counting on you to bring that knowledge with you to DLA."
   Brig. Gen. Judith Fedder, commander of the 76th Maintenance Wing of which the 776th MXSS is a part, opened the meeting saying "the reason General Busch and his team are here is to get everybody on the same sheet of music" as far as the BRAC transition is concerned.
   General Fedder said overall the transfer of function makes sense because "our core competencies at the OC-ALC are maintenance, repair and overhaul, whereas DLA's core competencies are supply, storage and distribution."
   "This transition is important for a lot of reasons, but first and foremost, it is the law," General Fedder said. "It's also the best thing to do for the warfighter. What you do everyday at the OC-ALC is vitally important to our mission and that will not change whether you are affected by the transfer or staying with the Air Force."
   Col. Carl Buhler, who is serving as DSCR's on-site lead for transition issues related to BRAC 2005 supply and storage decisions, was also on hand for the meeting and said "getting to day one is not an assumption."
   "It takes a lot of work by several organizations and personnel to ensure a smooth transition," Colonel Buhler said. "Additionally, the most important thing we're doing is to ensure we get payroll and entitlement issues right...that's why I'm here, to challenge every assumption and ensure we get the transition from the AF to DLA right."
   Elaine Dockray, 776th MXSS chief and point person for the OC-ALC transition, said the Air Force Civilian Personnel Office will determine who goes to DLA and who stays with the Air Force through federal regulations governing transfer of function.
   She said Civilian Personnel will ask for volunteers first, an option that was mandated in an Air Force Materiel Command Memorandum of Agreement signed by union workers.
   "It's important to note that this is a transfer of function only," she said. "Nobody is going to lose their job in this transition."
   Ms. Dockray went on to say that employees who are identified to transfer to DLA will still have the ability to apply and compete for Air Force jobs up to a year after they transition.
   Those employees will also be able to participate in their weekly "Fit for Life" fitness program and continue to receive tuition assistance, she said.
   Civilian Personnel began soliciting volunteers interested in transferring this week and will continue accepting volunteers through today. After that, positions will be identified based on seniority and other weighted factors.
   The OC-ALC transfer will mark the second of 13 such supply, storage and distribution transitions scheduled to take place over the next several years at all Air Force air logistics centers and industrial sites of other services. Warner-Robins ALC, Ga., was the first to complete its transition Oct. 15 and Hill AFB, Utah, will follow the OC-ALC's transition sometime in April.
   The next town hall meeting, to include those 776th MXSS employees identified to transition to DLA, will be held Jan. 15.
   For more information about the BRAC transition at Tinker, log onto https://wwwmil.tinker.af.mil/mam/brac/bracfaq.htm.