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JBSA News
NEWS | Feb. 12, 2021

Feedback Fridays

By Brig. Gen. Caroline M. Miller 502d Air Base Wing Commander

Feedback Fridays is a weekly forum that aims to connect the 502d Air Base Wing with members of the Joint Base San Antonio community. Questions are collected during commander’s calls, town hall meetings and throughout the week.

If you have a question or concern, please send an email to jbsapublicaffairs@gmail.com using the subject line “Feedback Fridays.” Questions will be further researched and published as information becomes available.

Q. I am presently a Government Scale employee of the 502nd Logistics Readiness Squadron at JBSA- Randolph Vehicle Maintenance.

I have concerns about the response of our squadron leadership in response to your setting of HPCON Charlie. I have received a copy of your guidance dated Dec. 30, 2020, but I did not receive a copy of this guidance from any of the leadership where I work or any others from within the squadron.

In your guidance, it clearly indicates the following: Commanders and supervisors at all levels need to balance employee schedules to accomplish the mission and accommodate high-risk members and other family considerations. This may include teleworking or adjusted work shifts.

We were notified last week that we were going into HPCON Charlie. I am a 75-year-old with some comorbidities which place me in a high-risk area. Up to the present day, by my own local leadership, I have not been offered any alternatives to working as normal. I am on an alternate work schedule where I work eight nine-hour days and one eight-hour day.

I do think that leadership based on the general's guidance should be offered some type of change in the work schedule. A possibility could be an alternating schedule to work one week on and one week off.

A. Thank you for the opportunity to address your concerns. The 502nd Vehicle Management team does its best to ensure that all Airmen both military members and civilians are working within safe conditions and are notified of HPCON changes.

Upon the initial wave of COVID-19, the section responded by establishing alternating shifts but found it to be nonconductive with the mission set.

The team takes COVID-19 mitigations and all high-risk matters seriously and has worked to provide safe working conditions, ample workspace and distancing for employees and ensure 6 feet or more spacing between desks and other work areas.

They have also provided personalized office space for those individuals that fall into the high-risk category.  HPCON Charlie signage was pushed out to all 502nd LRS personnel via the unit control center on Dec. 31, 2020, with directions that the change would take effect Jan. 4, 2021.

On Jan. 4, JBSA IC DIR 21-010401 JBSA COVID-19 Guidance Memo #47 and HPCON Charlie Implementation was provided to the flight leadership for distribution. All guidance is enforced as much as possible based on mission requirements; however, any concerns are addressed as quickly as possible, if known.

Q. My question is if it is possible to designate a time of the day in which retirees could use the gymnasiums.

With four gyms at JBSA-Lackland, perhaps a two-hour period could be allocated to retirees at a time when attendance by military personnel is at minimum.

I have used the gyms for more than 30 years and I am grateful for this privilege. Even a one- or two-day access would be appreciated by the retirees. Thank you.

A.  Thank you for contacting us regarding your concern.  Unfortunately, JBSA installations are in HPCON Charlie and are only allowing mission-essential personnel to enter for official business. 

To ensure we maintain combat readiness for our military and other mission essential members, and to reduce the risk of spread of COVID-19, JBSA Fitness Centers and Aquatic Centers are limited to military members, mission-essential Department of Defense civilians and first responders only. 

JBSA senior leadership and medical advisors will continually assess our health protection posture and implement changes to the services provided based on a detailed assessment and leaders’ decisions.