Shedding Light and Making Noise

All moving companies and contractors must make an independent business decision about whether to participate in military moves under the GHC. We want to hear from movers who have serviced GHC shipments — good, bad, or neutral. If you’d like to share your experience and help us gain better insights, please email [email protected]. 

Last week, multiple media reports confirmed what many in our industry feared: More than 1,000 military families have already encountered issues with moves under the Global Household Goods Contract (GHC). In response, the Department of Defense (DOD) has raised formal concerns about these performance failures as the problematic transition to GHC continues. 

The National Military Family Association has also flagged troubling issues that military families have had to deal with, including missed or delayed pickups and financial strain from lower reimbursement rates for personally procured moves.

The American Trucking Associations also voiced its dismay over its fears coming to fruition, saying recent issues were “a rapid, but predictable, result as we have observed from the sidelines.” 

We’re delighted to see more coverage of the challenges that military families are facing. However, some recent articles contain incomplete or misleading information. 

For example, a recent article in MilitaryTimes.com titled “Military families see bumpy start to household goods moving program” reported flawed statistics that downplay the severity of the issues. The piece states that the 1,000 reported problems represent “about 20%” of the 5,195 total shipment orders given to the GHC contractor. However, this calculation includes shipments that aren’t even in process yet — some of which won’t be scheduled until late 2025 or may be rerouted back into the legacy system via the Short Fuse process.

A more accurate assessment would be based on shipments that have actually taken place. Of the 1,737 shipments picked up under the GHC, some 1,000 have resulted in reported issues — meaning a shocking 58% of executed moves have been problematic for military families. By using the total shipment orders instead, the article underreports problems by misleadingly crediting the GHC for successful moves that haven’t even happened yet.

Additionally, the article cites a TRANSCOM claim that the legacy DP3 program has only a 77% satisfaction rate — a number we know is inaccurate. As a reminder, TRANSCOM’s own public dashboard shows that about 89% of families are satisfied with the current system. We’ve pointed this out before, yet the misleading stat continues to circulate.

As the GHC continues to flail, there have been multiple accounts of the legacy program stepping up to ensure that military families get the support they need, especially during urgent relocations. But if more than half of executed shipments continue to have issues as we enter peak season, where will that leave our military families? 

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Military families who have interacted with the GHC or have had issues with PPM reimbursements can share their stories, even anonymously, HERE. _____________________________________

PETITION: Military Families Shortchanged on Self-Move Rates

Military families are receiving over 40% lower reimbursement for Personally Procured Moves (PPM) under the GHC. A petition rightfully asks how military families can afford PPMs with such drastically reduced rates.

Army veteran and military spouse Megan Harless’ petition highlights how lower GHC rates for moving companies have resulted in reduced compensation for servicemembers relocating to new assignments. Members shouldn’t have to pay out of their own pockets to get the move that’s best for them. As predicted, the GHC is proving to be a disservice to military families.

Anyone who supports fair reimbursement for our service members and families for their relocations can sign the petition, even anonymously. 

LEARN MORE OR SIGN THE PETITION HERE.