Aussie Defence Force to get retention bonuses......

[GengisKhant]

To head off a looming manpower crisis, the Australian Defence Force will pay bonuses to full-timers and highly trained reservists who can be sent to fight overseas at short notice, reports the Age.
"High-readiness" reservists will get a $5000-a-year bonus to train for 40 days. They also will be given a $2500 contribution to health costs to balance the free medical care given permanent force members.
The Government also has continued its 3 per cent-a-year additional funding for major equipment, including ships, aircraft and tanks, from 2010-11, when the present commitment runs out, to 2015-16.
With more than 2000 personnel serving overseas and warnings from defence analysts that the ADF is running out of troops, the Government will spend $1.5 billion increasing the size of the army by 1485 by 2009-10 and encouraging the soldiers it has to stay.
There will be bonuses to encourage personnel, particularly those in critical trades, to stay.
The bigger regular army will be backed by 2800 reservists with improved equipment and training to increase their readiness to fight.
Defence spending is up by $1.9 billion on last year to $19.6 billion.
Over the life of the Howard Government, defence spending has increased in real terms by 37 per cent from $10.6 billion in 1995-96.
The extra 3 per cent funding a year will help pay for major equipment, including airborne early warning and control aircraft, air warfare destroyers and giant landing ships for the navy, Abrams tanks for the army and the multi-role joint strike fighter for the RAAF.
The Government has continued its 3 per cent annual defence funding supplement from the 2010-11 year to 2015-16.
That will cost an additional $2.4 billion, taking the total extra spending to $10.7 billion.
A further $2.2 billion will buy three or four massive C-17 Globemaster III transport planes each able to carry an army tank or five armoured personnel carriers.

GengisK :ok:

[The Helpful Stacker]

To head off a looming manpower crisis, the Australian Defence Force will pay bonuses to full-timers and highly trained reservists who can be sent to fight overseas at short notice, reports the Age.
"High-readiness" reservists will get a $5000-a-year bonus to train for 40 days. They also will be given a $2500 contribution to health costs to balance the free medical care given permanent force members.
The Government also has continued its 3 per cent-a-year additional funding for major equipment, including ships, aircraft and tanks, from 2010-11, when the present commitment runs out, to 2015-16.
With more than 2000 personnel serving overseas and warnings from defence analysts that the ADF is running out of troops, the Government will spend $1.5 billion increasing the size of the army by 1485 by 2009-10 and encouraging the soldiers it has to stay.
There will be bonuses to encourage personnel, particularly those in critical trades, to stay.
The bigger regular army will be backed by 2800 reservists with improved equipment and training to increase their readiness to fight.
Defence spending is up by $1.9 billion on last year to $19.6 billion.
Over the life of the Howard Government, defence spending has increased in real terms by 37 per cent from $10.6 billion in 1995-96.
The extra 3 per cent funding a year will help pay for major equipment, including airborne early warning and control aircraft, air warfare destroyers and giant landing ships for the navy, Abrams tanks for the army and the multi-role joint strike fighter for the RAAF.
The Government has continued its 3 per cent annual defence funding supplement from the 2010-11 year to 2015-16.
That will cost an additional $2.4 billion, taking the total extra spending to $10.7 billion.
A further $2.2 billion will buy three or four massive C-17 Globemaster III transport planes each able to carry an army tank or five armoured personnel carriers.

GengisK :ok:

Is it just me or is a switch to the RAAF looking more and more appetising every day?

[antipodean alligator]

Is it just me or is a switch to the RAAF looking more and more appetising every day?

Yeah, it all looks good in theory! All this shiny new stuff. HURRAH!!!!!!!!

I can assure you that there is very little difference....the ADF is still trying to do twice as much as it can whilst maintaining that it is a "people first" organisation.:(

[moosemaster]

Funny that, I applied to them last month and they said there were no vacancies at the moment. :confused:

Ho hum.

[reacher]

Jeez, looks like I'm trying to get in to late. I wonder if they will fund it retrospectivly:E

[Like This - Do That]

All the proposed retention measures are impressive, but but but .....

I still get the feeling that these won't convince people to stay (or join in the first place) when they know that they'll have a choice of such delightful workplaces like Darwin or Townsville or Oakey or Pucka (Seymour?!?!?) for the rest of their career. Tolerable for a few years for a young bloke, but our fearless sons of ANZAC will stuggle to convince their new brides to stick it out for another 15 years! She can't find a job, she misses her mum, the locals are (cough cough) a little too interesting, and the chance of getting Ross River virus or Dengue Fever is just inspiring .... etc etc

The RAAF do it a little better, who wouldn't want a Williamtown posting, and live in Newc or Port Stephens? But the army will still struggle.

$0.02

[rafloo]

Am I missing something here?

$5000 for 40 days work plus an extra $2500....whats that in English? Hang on a mo....


...


$7500 AS = £3101.54 GBP

£3101.54 / 40 days = £77.53 a day......................


woops, I was nearly knocked down in the stampede there. !

[airborne_artist]

Rafloo

The Aussie Army now has a reserve coy in each regular bn, and when the bn deploys sandy-side, the reserves are mobilised for the tour. The hi-readyness guys are on much the same (perhaps worse) deal to the TA in terms of commitment cycles, and so the Aussies are reacting to a retention problem.

It's not a bad deal though, as the Aus $ goes a long way compared to the £, and a Uk hi-ready guy/gal gets about £1,800 in bounty.

[rafloo]

It's not a bad deal though


Yes it is...Its a crock of Poo.

£77 a day? Our reserve forces wouldn't get out of bed for that.....


Is that with Flying pay or not?

[airborne_artist]

Rafloo

High-readiness" reservists will get a $5000-a-year bonus to train for 40 days

The way I read it that's the bonus for completing the minimum days. I'd expect they also get their daily rate for days attended. I can't believe that all their reservists are getting the same pay rate, regardless of rank.

A Cpl in UK gets about £70/day, and the £1,800 bounty for completing CFT, annual skill at arms etc, plus the min trg req., inc annual camp of 14 days. Sounds much the same in Oz.

[Like This - Do That]

Rafloo

Airborne_artist pretty much has it right. It's been almost 10 years since I was in, but IIRC ......

* A reservist gets paid a daily rate for anything from 6 hrs work on up. I think it's about A$80/day for a pay level 3 private (eg a rifleman - still pay level 3??? not sure); his platoon SGT will get about A$100/day, and his platoon commander about the same. A Tuesday or Wednesday night parade is considered half a day, and a weekend is considered two and a half days for pay purposes.
* I can't remember how many days before it cuts in, but there is field allowance which used to be A$25/day. Similarly there is a separation allowance which cuts in after a certain number of days.
* Each day served by a reservist cuts the member's annual Medicare levy eligibility ..... in other words a reservist who serves 36 and a half days has a 10% reduction (36.5 / 365 - geddit?) in the number of days for which he or she is eligible to pay Medicare (which is assessed at the end of the financial year at tax time).

So they've thrown a bunch of new allowances and bonuses at reservists as well. Good sh1t. In the current set up (& I'm talking army again) many high readiness reservists are in reserve battalions / regiments, not just regular army units.

It's not inconceivable that a reservist who isn't even in a high readiness subunit but who annually does a 2 week course, a 2 week exercise, and all the weekend and weeknight training could get tax free several thousand dollars. It's a pretty good deal, but even being a good deal all ARes units are way under staffed, a couple of specialist and SF mobs excepted.

Hope this clears it up a bit.

[BEagle]

Tax free..........

Not a concept that Grasping Gordon would view favourably.

[airborne_artist]

BEagle - UK Reserve Forces annual bounty is still tax-free :ok: