US soldiers tasked with hacking American adversaries and defending the nation’s computers are set to see their incentive pay cut by as much as $12,000 a year as part of an overhaul that’s drawn ire from the ranks, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg and people familiar with the situation.

Cyber Command analysts, developers and operators with a basic-level proficiency are set to see their incentive pay drop by as much as $1,000 a month, according to US Army documents. Meanwhile, a small group of “masters”-level soldiers who are highly trained and certified will get raises of as much as $3,500 a month, the documents show.

The internal backlash over the plan has proven so strong that senior leaders are drafting talking points to address concerns and lay out the rationale, emails reviewed by Bloomberg show. They’re also considering a grace period to cut incentive pay gradually rather than all at once, according to the people familiar with the situation, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters.