NORFOLK, Va. — The Navy is going to forgive past fitness test failures for active-duty and reserve sailors.
It's part of a broader effort to improve recruitment and retention.
An administrative memo released Thursday says any failures on the "physical fitness assessment" on or before Feb. 15 won't count towards consideration to re-enlist, advance or "execute other career continuation transitions."
Until now, a second consecutive failure of the test meant that a sailor's career in the Navy was effectively over. The new memo says this policy change doesn't alter those rules, calling it "a one-time reset."
The document, released by Vice Admiral Richard "Rick" J. Cheeseman Jr., Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Personnel, Manpower and Training states: "This policy does not supersede the need for an effective command-level culture of fitness. It remains incumbent upon individual sailors to invest in their personal health and wellness in order to maintain warfighting
readiness."