DA Civilians; Does the Army need them? Do we need as many as we have?

Our 10+ DACs play a vital role at my ammunition depot here in Japan.  They hold mostly QASAS (Quality Assurance Specialist Ammunition Surveillance) positions and garrison level management jobs (DPW, ATO, etc.).  They are veterans with 20-30 years of experience and levels of training and certification that greatly surpass what our 89As (ammo stock control) and 89Bs (ammo specialist) have.  There are very few of these MOSs in the Army and it makes more sense to keep these SMEs gainfully employed in my opinion.  I believe it takes about 2 years of schooling and OJT to train a QASAS and I doubt the Army would find it cost effective to have a dedicated MOS schooled for that long before they are considered qualified for duty.  Most of our DACs were considered "mission essential" but even with the loss of a few during the shutdown, our battle rhythm slowed. Plus our BN was in the processes of inactivation, but the mission requirement and the depot itself remains.  We are still able to provide theatre wide ammo support with just a LTC Depot Director and a SFC 89B now, precisely because of our DAC SMEs and host nation workforce.  This allowed the Army to inactivate our BN and put our Soldiers to better use in other parts of the Army.  Now, obviously my example is just once case, but I think it shows how many DACs have unique skill sets and experience that many Soldiers lack.  When managed properly, I think they can actually help free up Soldiers to fill more vital roles and better allow the Army to meet its force project requirements.  Some DACs are true combat multipliers and this should not be forgotten. 

2LT Travis Hooser,  Read the comment of CPT Mathew.  He hits the nail in the head in response to "what needs to be done to solve the issue,"  and that is to identify and push to change the classification to "mission essential" for all identified DA civilians so they are not lost during a shutdown.  

While I will admit that for every DA Civilian we have, we enable one more Soldier to be on the field fighting. However, I really feel the amount we have far exceeds the need. We have DA Civilians doing jobs that, rightfully, Soldiers should. We have so many 92Gs not cooking, 31B not doing police work, etc.

Honestly, if the case is "not enough guns on the battlefield," fire the DA Civilians and recruit more Soldiers. It would be cheaper, as most, if not all, DA Civilians make more than the average Soldier. I understand contracts and whatnot, but it would seem to me that this avenue of approach is the more cost effective way.