Military

Army updates rules for 'flagging' soldiers

At a time of drawdown and competitive retention screenings for officers and NCOs, it is no time to get “flagged” for running afoul of service standards for behavior, physical fitness or job competency.

The regulation governing the suspension of favorable personnel actions, or “flags,” has been updated so that it lays out in explicit detail the circumstances that can hurt a soldier’s standing with the Army.

The new edition of AR 600-8-2 was published May 11, and will take effect June 11 for soldiers who have been flagged for any number of adverse actions.

It replaces the October 2012 edition of the regulation. It applies to Regular Army, National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers.