Leave forms may be gone, but admin headaches endure for some soldiers

Some units, including the 25th Infantry Division, even have policies in place barring subordinate units from blocking soldiers’ leave over readiness or training metrics, according to a policy letter reviewed by Army Times. The only document required division-wide to take leave is a leave and earnings statement to verify that the soldier has accumulated the necessary days or understands the consequences of going negative on their leave balance.

One soldier said his unit used customization features available in IPPS-A to create a streamlined form for soldiers to request their block leave by simply entering their unit identifier code and where they intended to go.

But for other formations, old habits die hard. Voluminous paperwork requirements — and in some cases, old-school paper packets that require approval before the absence request is submitted — undercut the new HR platform’s promise, and increased access has led to an increase in administrative inconvenience under some commands.