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Former Sergeant Major Christian Bary Bull, a veteran Marine Corps leader, has taken to social media to publicly blast Marine Corps leadership after learning that a Private First Class (PFC) has gone unpaid for over three months.
A Private First Class (PFC) is a junior enlisted rank in the United States Marine Corps, designated at the Department of Defense (DoD) paygrade E-2.
A PFC earns a monthly basic pay starting at $2,261, which increases to $2,282 per month after serving more than two years, according to Military Ranks.
In addition to basic pay, PFCs may qualify for additional allowances, such as a Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) and a Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS). They may also be eligible for special incentive pay for hazardous duties, such as hostile fire or other dangerous assignments.
The fiery critique comes after Bull was contacted by the young Marine’s mother, who is struggling to financially support her son due to the Corps’ failure to process his pay.
The young Marine graduated boot camp on September 20 yet has not received a single paycheck since September 13.
Now stationed in Pensacola awaiting further training, the Marine has been left without funds to cover even basic necessities, forcing his small-business-owning mother to pay for haircuts, flights home, and other expenses.
“The young PFC that has not been paid in over 90 days. The last time he got paid was September 13th of this year. Graduated boot camp on September 20th of this mother freaking year and reported the problem when he got to Pensacola. He’s been there for over six weeks.”
Bull pointed out the absurdity of the situation, emphasizing that military personnel are paid every two weeks. “I’m not too damn good at math, but we get paid every damn two weeks over there in the military, right? Six weeks go by. I don’t know… but as of this morning, he has not been paid.”
“This makes my Sergeant Major blood boil,” Bull said in a passionate video posted online. “This is not leadership. It’s not taking care of Devil Dogs. It ain’t that hard.”
“That pisses me off. And apparently, the Sergeant Major knows. I don’t know who all knows. I don’t think the Commanding Officer knows. I told her—and I’m going to talk to them on Monday—we’re all going to hop on a call.”
“I told her he needs to Request Mast, and the desired outcome should be: Number 1, I want to get paid. Number 2, until I get paid, I want daily updates of all the stuff that’s going on with where the hell my money is,” Bull said.
Bull argued that the situation highlights a broader failure in leadership within the Marine Corps. He recounted his own experiences as a leader, emphasizing how he would have personally ensured that a Marine in his charge received the financial support they were due.
“You’re going to get paid today, or as leaders, we’re going to throw some money in a hat. Even if it’s just me, I really don’t care. You’re going to have some cash in your hand today. I don’t care. You know what? You ain’t got to pay me back. Just take my money.”
Bull posted a new update on Monday. While leadership has intervened and contacted the Marine’s mother, Bull made it clear that addressing the problem is not the same as resolving it.
“So to all you all that are like, ‘Oh, this problem got fixed.’ No, wrong. The problem got addressed. The leadership, thank you to the leadership, they got heavily involved.”
“They did contact the mother. They didn’t get involved in the issue, and the issue was addressed. The issue was addressed. And there is a big difference because until that money hits your account, you ain’t going to feel like it’s fixed.”
As of the morning, the Marine’s request for payment was approved and sent to dispersing. Bull noted the speed of the approval process due to his viral video but stressed that no payment had yet been received.
“As of 08:56 Eastern Standard Time, the Marine’s request and everything else—it’s called the Quad—was approved. It’s over at dispersing. But what I don’t know is when he’s going to get paid.”
Bull speculated that the payment might not arrive until January 1, leaving the Marine and his family in limbo over the holidays. He also raised questions about whether the Marine had requested advanced pay, which could provide immediate relief.
Bull praised the Marine’s mother for raising an “amazing son” and encouraged his audience to support her small business as she continues to bear the financial burden of her son’s service.
Her mother’s business is Taqueria Nayarit at 11323 Rhody Dr., Port Hadlock, WA, United States, Washington.