U.S. Army Reserve Command Sgt. Maj. Luther Thomas Jr. visited Fort Jackson on Saturday to brief Reservists on the challenges facing them in the coming years.

The biggest challenge? Raising retention numbers without letting troop quality slip, a concern shared by several in the audience.

"We're not asking you to keep a bad Soldier" in order to pad retention rates, Thomas assured the group.

Instead, he said, Soldiers flagged for overweight or for other issues need to hear: "Here's a second chance for you, but it's not an unlimited chance."

Late last year, the Army Reserve began a series of town hall meetings to brief Soldiers and the media on Operation Full-Court Press, an initiative aimed at raising retention rates in an era of shrinking budgets and increasing demands.

Because the pool of potential recruits has shrunk, the Reserve has placed more emphasis on keeping the troops it has. That causes problems when units are faced with a number of out-of-shape Soldiers, whose files include negative "flags."

The Reserve stresses that those Soldiers bear individual responsibility for getting into Soldierly shape, but Thomas emphasized that commanders, too, should work alongside them.

"You have … to ask yourself," Thomas said, "did you do everything you could to help this Soldier?

"Show compassion to Soldiers who are having issues, but - at the same time - do not ignore standards."

Such methods would bring changes in other areas, too, such as the rising suicide rate among younger enlistees, who have difficulty with finances and relationships.

The suicide rate nudged up "a little bit" during the latest year reported, he said. Although suicides among active-duty troops declined, they rose from 140 to 152 among Reservists and National Guardsmen, figures from the Pentagon show.

"One of the things that we don't do enough is to talk to our Soldiers," Thomas said. "What I'm asking you to do is get to know your Soldiers … all those things that non-commissioned officers should know about their Soldiers, but they don't."

Thomas also briefed those assembled on a number of other issues:

• As of Oct. 1, he said, no Reservist will be promoted without obtaining the requisite training first.

• Social media is a tempting trap, but no Soldier should post something about an Army senior leader that couldn't be said to that leader's face.

• The Reserve is working to foster an "Army ethic" in which "there's no room for sexual assault, sexual harassment" -- a Service in which all Soldiers "feel comfortable talking to their leaders because there's a trust … decency and respect."

About 40 Reserve Soldiers attended the town hall meeting. In all, 1,742 Reservists train at Fort Jackson at different times.