Navy Sea Pay: History and Recent Initiatives

The Ninth Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation (QRMC) is reviewing the role of the military compensation system in past recruiting, manning, and retention shortfalls in search of ways to better structure compensation to mitigate these problems in the future. A synopsis of sea pay is presented in this paper. First, the purpose of sea pay and how it has changed through the Navy's history is addressed: who has been eligible for sea pay and the size of sea pay relative to basic pay and to manpower expenditures. Secondly, sea pay as it has been used in the recent past is described including: the sea pay table; incentives; and, survey and actual behavioral data. Thirdly, reforms to sea pay currently being implemented are detailed, along with the Navy's objectives and options. Finally, the implications for a new service-wide deployment pay are considered.