CQ or charge of quarters is a tasked duty in which a
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...
service member is to guard the front entrance to the
barracks. In which the two
service members, one a
non-commissioned officer (NCO) and the other a junior enlisted service member, sit at a desk to monitor incoming and outgoing traffic into the barracks. There are usually additional duties, such as sweeping the entryway, cleaning the entrance restrooms, and checking the barracks laundry room for laundry left overnight. Other duties may include performing radio checks every few hours with other
company barracks and
battalion
A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...
headquarters around the base or surrounding installations as well as bed checks to ensure service members are in their rooms with their doors locked by
curfew
A curfew is a government order specifying a time during which certain regulations apply. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to ''not'' be in public places or on roads within a certain time frame, typically in the evening and ...
. For example, some U.S. Armed Forces service members stationed in
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
have a curfew for being on post, and another one for being in their own individual rooms with their doors locked.
Weekend shifts usually start at 0700 hours (7:00 a.m.), depending on the
military branch and installation, and go for 24 hours. During the work week, the duty starts at between 1600 and 1630 hours (4:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.), also known as
Close of Business (COB). Service members are typically excused from duties the following day after being relieved by a senior NCO, in most cases the unit's
first sergeant.
References
{{Reflist
External links
* https://web.archive.org/web/20100917122604/http://armybasic.org/portal/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=10
Military terminology of the United States