The Navy is expanding the Detailing Marketplace Assignment Policy, the enlisted career management tool for reducing manning gaps at sea, to sailors in the damage controlman and aviation boatswain’s mate ratings.

The Detailing Marketplace Assignment Policy, known as DMAP, allows sailors in sea-intensive ratings E-6 and below who wrap up a four-year apprentice sea tour to receive certain benefits and promote if they sign on to another three-year sea tour.

Sailors must complete a Rating Knowledge Exam in March, which upon passage, allows them to compete for higher billets starting in June by applying for jobs in the MyNavy Assignment marketplace, or if their commanding officer taps them for an open billet.

“Once matched to a billet at the next higher rank, the Sailor must obligate service to complete the full tour at the new rank in the new billet via extension or reenlistment, as necessary, and may be frocked 30 days prior to transfer,” the NAVADMIN said. “Sailors will be advanced by the gaining command upon arrival in the new billet and after completion of any required training.”

Whereas other phases of DMAP focused on the promotion from E-4 to E-5, this latest rollout focuses on the promotion to E-5 and E-6 in those two ratings, said Rear Adm. James Waters III, director of the Military Personnel Plans and Policy Division.

That will also pave the way for when the Navy unveils the final stage of DMAP for Operations Specialist (OS) and Fire Controlman- AEGIS (FCA) ratings, which have a longer training pipeline than most other ratings.

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As a result, sailors in those ratings promote to E-5 more quickly than others and the Navy loses the ability to use promoting to E-5 as an incentive, Waters said.

Although both ratings had a very high overall fill, sea duty fill only reached roughly 80 percent – causing some imbalances in the rating, with more sailors ashore than should be, Waters said. Introducing DMAP to those ratings aims to incentivize more of those sailors to serve at sea.

“This is why we think this system – where you’re incentivizing the billets that you want filled – with the opportunity to advance will shift that bias back towards sea,” Waters told reporters.

DMAP is accompanied by incentive bonuses ranging from $200 to $800 a month – depending upon the location and type of sea duty – averaging out to approximately $500 a month.

Ratings already eligible for benefits under DMAP include:

  • Aviation boatswain’s mate (launch/recovery)
  • Aviation boatswain’s mate (fuel)
  • Aviation boatswain’s mate (aircraft handling)
  • Electrician’s mate
  • Aviation structural mechanic (safety equipment)
  • Quartermaster (surface warfare)
  • Aviation ordnanceman
  • Gunner’s mate
  • Gas turbine system technicians (mechanical)
  • Culinary specialist
  • Machinist’s mate
  • Interior communications electrician
  • Retail services specialist

The Navy first rolled out DMAP in December 2021 to gradually replace Sea Shore Flow, which dictated that sea tours were a maximum of five years and allowed sailors the option to extend. But the policy led to gaps at sea and caused challenges in implementing circadian rhythm watch bills, degraded materiel readiness and limited training times, the Navy said.

As a result, DMAP eliminated the maximum sea duty tour length constraint.

DMAP is one of several initiatives underway aimed at filling gaps at sea, along with efforts like the Senior Enlisted Marketplace the Navy rolled out last year.

The Senior Enlisted Marketplace Screening Board conducts screenings of board-eligible E-8s who, if selected, gain access to the marketplace to apply for a qualified billet.

Sailors have 24-months to enter one of 10 of the MyNavy Assignment cycles to apply for a list of jobs in the marketplace aligned with their ratings.

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