The U.S. Army and its contractors use the utmost care when handling chemical weapons to better protect the workforce, the public and the environment. A part of this commitment to safety and security is the Army’s Personnel Reliability Program (PRP). The purpose of this program is to ensure that each person who performs duties involving chemical agents meets and maintains the highest possible standards of reliability.

Many of the employees who currently store and safeguard chemical weapons at the Blue Grass Army Depot are in jobs that are specifically governed by the PRP. Many employees who work at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant also must meet the strict requirements of the PRP. Determining whether a person qualifies to work in a PRP position includes initial evaluations at the time of hiring and continuing evaluations once the person is employed. This evaluation includes medical tests and an extensive background investigation. The Army uses the following standards and requirements to determine if an individual is suitable for the PRP:

• Physical competence, mental alertness and technical proficiency commensurate with duty requirements
• Evidence of dependability in accepting responsibilities and effectively performing in an approved manner
• Flexibility in adjusting to changes in the working environment
• Evidence of good social adjustment, emotional stability and ability to exercise sound judgment in meeting adverse or emergency situations
• Positive attitude toward chemical duties and the PRP

The Army looks for potentially disqualifying information. This is any information including, but not limited to, a person’s physical, mental and emotional status. Conduct or character, exhibited both on- and off-duty and at any time during employment, which may cast doubt on an individual’s ability or reliability to perform chemical duties, is also considered.

The PRP helps ensure that the chemical weapons destruction workforce is reliable, effective and competent to perform the important mission of safely destroying the chemical weapons stockpile.