In order to be as inclusive as possible and reflect that all Navy occupations are open to men and women, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus recently met with his leadership team to discuss the service's enlisted rating titles review.

During the meeting, senior Navy leaders, including Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Mike Stevens, agreed to develop a new approach to enlisted ratings that provides greater detailing flexibility, training and credentialing opportunities, is more gender inclusive, and ultimately translates Navy occupations more clearly to the American public.

"As we move to achieve full integration of the force, mirroring more closely the nation that we defend, this is an opportunity to update position titles and descriptions to be more inclusive and better translate occupation and skill sets to prospective employers when Sailors and Marines leave the service," said Mabus.

The Navy will establish a second working group comprised of senior leaders from throughout the fleet to study how potential changes to rating titles may affect related personnel policy issues. Results of that review are expected to be completed and announced later this fall.

"This is an important opportunity for the Navy," said Stevens. "We have a chance to pour a foundation that will last for decades to come."

As the Navy implements several personnel policy changes as part of its Sailor 2025 program, senior leaders expect the results of this review to allow more flexibility in detailing Sailors, provide greater training and credentialing opportunities, and help Sailors become more marketable to civilian employers once they leave the service.

They also envision a point where some combinations of today's rates, with similar training and experience, can quickly and easily cross into the occupations of other similar rates with a limited amount of additional training or experience. This has the potential to enhance career flexibility and detailing options for our Sailors, while also improving "fit" - our ability to get the right Sailors with the right skills into the right billets across the Fleet.

The chief of naval personnel/N1 will lead the Navy's implementation efforts.

Throughout the Navy's 241-year history, there have been more than 700 rating name changes for Sailors.

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