Photo By Cpl. Erick Butler | New York National Guard Maj. Gen. Michel A. Natali, the assistant Adjutant General for...... read more read more
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CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, New York-- Thirty-four New York National Guard Soldiers from across the state spent Sept. 20-26 at Camp Smith Training Site learning about the how equal opportunity works in the Army.
The Soldiers are Equal Opportunity leaders in their units and the weeklong session was designed to teach them the latest on equal rights and opportunities in the workplace, explained Lt. Col. Monique Foster, the state’s Equal Opportunity Employment Manager.
The Soldiers learned the latest information on Army Regulation 600-20, which governs equal opportunity and sexual assault policies. They also heard from Major General Michele Natali, the Assistant Adjutant General, Army, about the importance he places on what they do.
“In this new information age, Soldiers and civilian employees have more awareness and educational tools at their disposal to deal with harassment,” Foster said. “They’re being encouraged to use those tools to take action, and they’re feeling more confident that their leadership will facilitate a resolution.”
Maj. Stephen Keblish, the state Equal Employment/Military Employment Officer, added how vital this information is in helping people see through their internal biases which allows them to come to a reasonable conclusion.
“Understanding human nature helps in creating better policies for prevention,” said Keblish. “In this line of work, we’re trying to deal with human nature which comes with stubbornness and complex issues, but these new policies should enable soldiers to function as a team in the workplace more effectively.”
Sgt. Felix Fermin, a recruiter assigned to the Bronx recruiting and retention office said he is excited to bring back what he learned to his Soldiers.
“It’s great training for every Soldier—it doesn’t matter what rank you are—whether you’re a private or General, you should take this course,” Fermin said. “The new policies help protect human dignity which propels Soldiers to a higher plateau in their career.
The updated changes to AR 600-20 include the Army Harassment Prevention and Response Program—a policy that allows Soldiers to report on harassment such as hazing, bullying, and discriminatory harassment.
Furthermore, if a Soldier is having an issue with performing duties, the corrective action must be oriented for improving that deficiency. However, according to the updated AR 600-20, a brief physical exercise is an acceptable way of disciplining a Soldier, such as doing push-ups, as long as Army policies prohibiting hazing, bullying, and unlawful punishment are not violated, Foster said.
“For the past two years there has been an emphasis placed on enhancing this program to better assist the Soldiers in need,” Foster said. “The focus of this course is not reacting to harassment, but how to prevent it before it happens.”
| Date Taken: | 09.29.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 09.29.2020 13:49 |
| Story ID: | 379671 |
| Location: | CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE , NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 106 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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