Furloughs close Commissary on Mondays

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Timothy Moore
  • 355th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  The Commissary here is slated to close on Mondays beginning July 8, as a result of the civilian furloughs.

The decision comes from the Defense Commissary Agency following Department of Defense protocols related to automatic federal government budget reductions.

The Defense Commissary Agency chose Mondays, as they are one of the slowest sales days for commissaries.

"We know that any disruption in commissary operations will impact our patrons," said Joseph H. Jeu, DeCA's director and CEO. "Also, we understand the tremendous burden this places on our employees, who, when furloughed, will lose 20 percent of their pay."

The Monday closures will be in addition to any days that the store locations are normally closed. For example, commissaries that are normally closed on Mondays are also slated to close on Tuesdays.

The decision will impact nearly all commissaries with a few overseas exceptions. This is due to store staffs overseas having enough local national employees, who are exempt from furlough action, to keep the stores opened.

The Defense Commissary Agency Headquarters will also close on Mondays as part of the furloughs.

The change is expected to run through Sept. 30.

For more information about store changes, customers can visit www.commissaries.com: use the "Locations" link, then "Alphabetical Listing," to find a store and then check out the "Local Store Information" link.

(Editor's Note: Some information was taken from a May 2013 Commissaries press release.)