The United States Department of Defense (“DoD”) has reported deployed private contractor numbers for the second quarter of 2019. The report includes data on DoD contractors deployed overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria. In short, the DoD reports 55,135 deployed contractor personnel, which represents an increase of approximately 2,073 from the previous reported figures. The full report can be found here. Below, I touch on some of the highlights of the report.
As noted above, the April 2019 DOD report breaks down deployed contractors by country. Afghanistan has about 30,500 deployed contractors, while Iraq and Syria have a combined 6,900. Additionally, the DOD breaks down the compilation of contractors by citizenship. The majority of contractors in Iraq and Syria are U.S. citizens, while the number of Third Country Nationals and Local National Contractors outnumber U.S. citizen contractors deployed in Afghanistan.
Concerning Iraq and Syria, the majority of contractors deployed are in Logistics and Maintenance (35.2%), Base Support (17.8%) and Translator/Interpreting (12.8%). Medical/Dental (.3%) and Training (.5%) represent the smallest faction. This report unfortunately highlights the little emphasis placed upon the health and well being of our contractors deployed overseas in war zones. When injured, contractors are provided little to no remedies except those afforded under the Defense Base Act.
As applicable in Afghanistan, the majority of contractors deployed are in Logistics and Maintenance (31.6%), Security (19.2%) and Base Support (13.7%). Unfortunately, Medical/Dental (.3%) and IT/Communication (3.2%) represent the smallest faction of deployed contractors. Again, this report highlights how little emphasis is placed upon the health and well being of contractors deployed overseas in Afghanistan.
Of importance, all injured contractors working under the above contracts are covered under the Defense Base Act, regardless of citizenship. The Defense Base Act is a federal workers’ compensation framework that provides medical benefits and compensation benefits to injured contractors, and funeral expenses and death compensation benefits to deceased contractors. The Defense Base Act is an injured workers’ sole remedy for injury, so retaining an experienced attorney to handle your claim at the outset is absolutely critical. Please contact us here should you have any questions about your entitlement to Defense Base Act compensation benefits.