PROMOTION TO FIRST CLASS LOOKS GRIM
It was very difficult for cooks, torpedomen and enginemen to get promoted to the first class petty officer, or chief rating in the early ninteen fifties. Promotion to the next rating was depended upon a combination of test score and time in rate.
I had passed the examination and made second class petty officer in nineteen fifty-five, but it looked like I had hit the end of the line. A 4.0 score on the next test wasn't going to cut it. The Engineman rating was just about closed up. There were too many WW II types still in the military and with their seniority they could fill every opening that became available until sometime in the mid 1960s when they were finally going to complete twenty years of service and hopefully retire.
Their retirement should leave some room for us younger fellows to move up in the ratings. Most of these senior Enginemen seemed to be stationed at Little Creek, Virginia the home of amphibious boats and old Enginemen.
In 1959 the U.S.Navy made an exception for enginemen in the nuclear program. Since NAUTILUS was a steam ship, we were allowed to change our rate to Machinist Mate. We took the second class machinist mate test and passed, but had to wait for "time in rate" to accumulate before we could be examined for first class.
Meanwhile we became the first group of sailors to get "proficiency pay." In other words, we got the money, but not the rating. That's OK.! Another year won't kill us. Who says the Navy doesn't love us!