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They are no longer benefits. I have been shopping off base for years now. Its sad to see the change over the years but i guess its expected when they incorporated the BX credit cards. Matter of fact, the other day, in the commissary, an employee approached me to enroll in their commissary discount card...i could not believe it.
I think you'll find it isn't a 'Commissary Discount card' but rather an electronic coupon store.
You go online, download the coupons you may want to use to your account and when you shop at the commissary they will recall the coupons from your electronic store and credit you with the amount.
The alternative (which I usually use) is to leave the coupons on the fridge at home.
WOW...I'm glad this thread got so many thoughtful responses! Sorry to take so long to add my two cents worth; it was a rough week at work. (I thought this "retirement" job would be easier...) This Wall Street Jornal opinion piece did cover other military compensation issues (FWIW, I believe that some day our retirement system ought to change to make it fairer for those who don't stay 20 years. But also not be such a good deal that the services lose talented mid-grade Enlisted and officer experience too soon.)
Yep, it's easy to sit in my easy chair, collecting my pension and reading the Wall Street Journal. And maybe these guys have a point. I'm located about 15 minutes from Wright-Patterson AFB. It's not like the base is out in the middle of nowhere. Heck, there's a VERY nice mall not far from the base and all kinds of retail within a few minutes from the base. BUT WAIT... many of you have made valuable points. We've been promised AAFES, NEX and the commissary for years as part of our compensation. Maybe it's not first on every enlistee's reasons for joining. But it sure is touted whenever military benefits are discussed and when our pay & allowances are figured by Congress. Then there's the contributions that AAFES and the commissaries contribute to morale, welfare & recreation funding. And for all of the efforts to help military families find employment, AAFES and the commissaries sure offer great opportunities (as wel as making it easier to keep the military member) Heck, there are plenty of civilians that benefit from stateside military retail stores. (Transportation comes to mind...)
I'm not sure the savings from getting rid of the stateside exchanges and commissaries would be as great of a savings as the critics say it would be.
You are correct that is why we pay surcharge. The Base Exchanges and Commissaries are self sustaining. Some items sold at the base cost more than on the economy (ie Walmart). Some items cost less.
You are correct, some prices on post/base is more expensive than off. One I noticed this past weekend was that the Cinnamon Swirl Oatmeal is .49 more on post than off. As for the PX, I dont even think about going there for anything. Target and Walmart are so much cheaper.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Poncho_NM
For some who I have seen, the re-enlistment bonus...
Or some who want to stay in, but change their mind...
What I'm hearing from some fellow military wives is the economy in general. Their husbands start looking for jobs and are having a difficult time finding anything.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pyramidsurf
The ST6 guy did an interview with Esquire talking about how if he leaves at 16 years he gets nothing. He'll get some VA disability, but no healthcare for his family and he'll be without any type of pension from the government. His only option to get the benefits is to go back to war. The article is here.
It opened up a discussion on how the current pension is very outdated and how some spending cuts need to happen.
When I heard about this story, I got so aggetated because he made the choice to get out. A friend of mine, her husband got discharged with 5 years health care and his wife and kids have nothing. They have been out for 7 months and are just now able to move out of their families home since they are finally able to make ends meet.
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Originally Posted by ESFP
Hey, Crew Chief! You know, if the military wants to cut spending, how 'bout those private Admiral's yachts, chauffered cars for the brass, separate dining facilities for enlisted/officers... Nah. A lot of families couldn't make it if it weren't for the on-base stores. Thanks for the update.
I can name many things that the military can cut out (unneccessary TDY's, unneccessary PCS moves etc). When my husband first joined, if it was not for the commissary, we would have really been hurting more than what we were.
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Originally Posted by Manuel de Vol
'Raise' - Pretty obvious what that means.
If you go into your local BX (If you're lucky enough to have one where you live) you will probably see a large sign on a wall which announces how much cash that particular exchange has paid to support MWR.
If the government closes AAFES, do you think Walmart or any of the other stores down town is going to fund MWR?
The little bit of a raise we got this year it was taken back in taxes (and then some). We all know that Walmart and other places wouldnt give 5% of the sales to the military community.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Manuel de Vol
I think you'll find it isn't a 'Commissary Discount card' but rather an electronic coupon store.
You go online, download the coupons you may want to use to your account and when you shop at the commissary they will recall the coupons from your electronic store and credit you with the amount.
The alternative (which I usually use) is to leave the coupons on the fridge at home.
Yes it is a coupon type of thing. With your bar code it gives you coupons based on what you purchase which is nice.
One thing I can say is that the commissaries do reach an agreement with those who provide products in the stores. Butterball ground turkey is no longer carried at our commissary here because they couldnt reach a contract. A milk provider has a smaller section in the dairy case because of the contract they agreed upon. There is a .30 difference between the two brands they have in the case. Heck even our dogs food is cheaper at the commissary by nearly $15 per 30lb bag.
It would hurt us budget/money wise if anything would happen to the commissary.
My Dw works for DECA, I was hesitant to jump into this discussion when it first opened as I am clearly biased.
DECA is not a 'for profit' business. They are government employees. The biggest voice in how DECA works is NAGE [the union].
If a 'for profit' mindset was instilled into DECA then they could easily make a profit, offer lower prices, and high quality foods. But most managers are not authorized shoppers, they are simply government employees.
We have observed many times, when employees who are authorized shoppers, have tried to do things to increase sales and improve product quality. When sales numbers get a bump, those were did it, will get 'atta boy's, articles are written and published in the DECA monthly magazine, etc. But 3 months later those employees get rotated to other departments, and whatever initiatives they started will be dis-mantled.
We have seen this cycle repeat a few times.
Like any enterprise operated by the government, they are not efficient, timely, nor do they offer a quality product.
They do offer 'name-brand' products from the biggest corporations; but at the expense of local products, lower priced brand names, or generics. Notice there are no DECA brand products either.
The contracts given out for warehousing, shipping, logistics are not handled with a view toward cost savings. As with any other government contract, lots of other expenses are allowed to be folded into the price that DECA pays.
Long ago, many bases began allowing open bidding for fast-food franchises to hold contracts to come on-base and offer fast-food. I think that system worked well. Because those franchises still had the 'for profit' mindset. They worked to keep their operating costs low, high quality products, etc.
We live about 15 minutes from Wright-Patterson AFB, OH. I don't think we've ben on base a dozen time in the 13 years we've lived here. We buy all our groceries from a local market that treats us VERY well. They know us by name. I'm not sure I want to get rid of base/post exchanges and commissaries. But we really don't use OUR benefits enough to make them worthwhile.
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) This Wall Street Jornal opinion piece did cover other military compensation issues (FWIW, I believe that some day our retirement system ought to change to make it fairer for those who don't stay 20 years. But also not be such a good deal that the services lose talented mid-grade Enlisted and officer experience too soon.)
