Action Line 81126 - COLA

  • Published
  • By Anonymous
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Complaint:
For awhile now, I've had some questions/concerns about the COLA we receive here at Incirlik.

I understand it is lower than most bases because things purchased in Turkey are oftentimes less expensive than they would be in the states; however, I think there is a lot more to consider when determining COLA, and I'm not sure it's adjusted properly.

It might be less expensive to live here than other bases, but many families who are used to two incomes are forced to survive on one, which can be a big burden. Jobs at Incirlik are hard to come by, and when there are jobs available, they're usually only accessible through USAJobs, which is a ridiculous processthat rarely has the outcome of someone here getting the job.

NAF jobs are more readily available, but working for less than minimum wage is not something many college educated and/or experienced adults are going to do. Also, the income from these jobs would hardly compensate for the childcare many parents would have to pay if they did have both parents working, let alone go above and beyond to help with the family budget.

To make matters worse, I now hear there has been consideration of removing COLA altogether because "the American dollar is so strong compared to the Lira."

If this is logical reasoning, then we should have been compensated earlier in the year when it was doing poorly by comparison. Also, gas in the states is now averaging $1.95 a gallon; it's $1.58 in my hometown. Yet we're still paying almost $5 for our gas here. If you calculate the money most families spend on gas here vs. what they'd pay in the states right now, our COLA would barely pay the difference, let alone the other costs of living.

There are a lot of things that can make living here at Incirlik difficult, but struggling financially should never be one of them. People are separating from the military at high rates right now, and I have to believe frustration from feeling undercompensated has a lot to do with it. It gets a little old to watch AFN commercial after commercial, and hear speaker after speaker talk about how much America and the Air Force "supports" their troops and their families, and yet now we're working harder, being deployed more, and now, getting paid less for it.

Response:
Thanks for taking the time to write. Lots of different issues in your remarks, but I'm afraid you have the reason for COLA confused. 

COLA is only a cost of living adjustment to compensate for relative costs of goods between the US and the country where you live. Gasoline is just one very small part of that equation (and by the way, gas prices have dropped significantly since you wrote this). As for COLA "going away", that didn't happen per se, but it was set to zero mainly because of the very good exchange rate with the YTL. 

There is an action started to do another review of relative costs from the local area to make sure our COLA is correct. 

As for the availability of jobs here, stop by the civilian personnel office for help if you are having difficulty with USA Jobs...they can assist you. Our civilian personnel office has managed to fill over half of our job vacancies in the last many months, but there are still many available. 

They can help...let them try! We appreciate you and your spouse's service to the country.