Retail Services Specialist

Retail Services Specialist (abbreviated RS) is a rating in the US Navy. RSs are responsible for managing and operating all shipboard retail and service activities, including the ship's store, vending machines, coffee kiosks (on aircraft carriers), barber shops and laundry operations. They play a large role in the morale of the ship[1].

Retail Services Specialist
Rating insignia
Issued byUnited States Navy
TypeEnlisted rating
AbbreviationRS
SpecialtyAdministration

History

The RS rating was established on October 1, 2019 with the renaming of the existing Ship's Serviceman (SH)[2]. The SH rating was established in February 1944 in four specialty ratings: Ship's Serviceman B (barber) (SSMB), Ship's Serviceman C (cobbler) (SSMC), Ship's Serviceman L (laundryman) (SSML) and Ship's Serviceman T (tailor) (SSMT)[3]. In April 1948, the four specialty ratings were merged into a single rating. The rating abbreviation was changed to SH. SHs specialized as barbers, cobblers, laundrymen, store clerks or tailors in pay grades E-3 and E-4[4][5].

Duties

Retail Services Specialists perform the following duties[1]:

  • Managing and operating retail and service activities afloat
  • E-Commerce
  • Procuring ship's store stock
  • Receiving and managing retail inventory
  • Maintaining financial records and accounting systems
  • Maintaining inventory and procurement databases
  • Managing and operating ship's barber shops
  • Serving as Navy Cash Collections Agents
  • Operating and maintaining vending and Navy Cash ATM machines
  • Managing and operating ship's laundry services
  • Hospitality services

References
  1. "RS Rating". www.public.navy.mil. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  2. Chief of Naval Personnel Public Affairs. "Navy Announces Rating Name Change to Retail Services Specialists". www.navy.mil. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  3. "USN WW2 Enlisted Rates: Special Branch". uniform-reference.net. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  4. "All Hands: The Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin" (PDF). March 1948. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  5. "Ship's serviceman 3 & 2". HathiTrust. Retrieved 2019-11-26.


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