Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

The Future of the Army Reserve - Discuss

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • 2 CAVALRY SQUADRON pennant.
    The 2 Cavalry Squadron is based in Cathal Brugha Barracks Dublin Ireland.
    The total establishment is 122 all ranks.
    1 Commandant 3 Captains 5 Lieutenants 1 Sqn Sgt 1 Sqms 16 Sgts 19 Cpls 76 Tprs.
    The unit is equipped as follows 3 Panhard AML 90mm 3 AML 20mm armoured cars
    Seems it wasn't always restricted......taken from a website relating to the unit generated by a now deceased prolfic member of that unit.....

    So why is it restricted?

    for example certain units have only Lt's and no Capts/Comdts which presents a difficult problem for career and liaison
    Very simple solution to that... redeployment.

    Add up all the active reservists, comes to probably 3 battalions , now fill the ranks with the available people, if you have a surplus, you are over manned in certain areas, a shortage you need to either redeploy people to fill the appointments or promoted.

    In the current situation the AR looks to be looked as a whole rather than isolated pockets of activity. That creates a level playing field for all and puts people where they should be , allowing them to do the jobs attributable to rank.

    You could then justify running probably a 10% surplus across the board. Lower than Sergeants wouldn't really matter as these numbers in the past tended to be transient.
    Covid 19 is not over ....it's still very real..Hand Hygiene, Social Distancing and Masks.. keep safe

    Comment


    • Murf you are assuming its all Line

      several people are occupying specialist roles ( look at COS twitter today for example ) and the potential here should not be underestimated.
      "Are they trying to shoot down the other drone? "

      "No, they're trying to fly the tank"

      Comment


      • What is RDFRA's current top priority? I believe that it SHOULD be recruitment above all else. Is it though? is that the big ticket item that they constantly push? If not, why not?
        "He is an enemy officer taken in battle and entitled to fair treatment."
        "No, sir. He's a sergeant, and they don't deserve no respect at all, sir. I should know. They're cunning and artful, if they're any good. I wouldn't mind if he was an officer, sir. But sergeants are clever."

        Comment


        • What is RDFRA's current top priority? I believe that it SHOULD be recruitment above all else. Is it though? is that the big ticket item that they constantly push? If not, why not?

          i take the point but the next campaign dates are out and theres no limit on numbers to be recruited ( well there is but you won't hit them ) .... there was 2 last year ....

          you should also be aware of the issues that RDFRA are legally allowed to advocate for ( S7 schedule 2 ) numbers of troops is specifically denied if I recall
          "Are they trying to shoot down the other drone? "

          "No, they're trying to fly the tank"

          Comment


          • Originally posted by hptmurphy View Post
            Seems it wasn't always restricted......taken from a website relating to the unit generated by a now deceased prolfic member of that unit.....

            So why is it restricted?
            It always was restricted and still is.



            Very simple solution to that... redeployment.

            Add up all the active reservists, comes to probably 3 battalions , now fill the ranks with the available people, if you have a surplus, you are over manned in certain areas, a shortage you need to either redeploy people to fill the appointments or promoted.

            In the current situation the AR looks to be looked as a whole rather than isolated pockets of activity. That creates a level playing field for all and puts people where they should be , allowing them to do the jobs attributable to rank.

            You could then justify running probably a 10% surplus across the board. Lower than Sergeants wouldn't really matter as these numbers in the past tended to be transient.
            So it should be a case that we have say 1500 all ranks so let’s say 10 Inf Coys?!

            Then you realise there are say 50 comdts, 100 Capts, 50 CSs and 50 CQs on the strength. So you discharge all of those you don’t need and your down to 1290 on strength.

            The aspiration is to fill all vacancies from private up you can’t do that if you constantly make the establishment smaller

            Comment


            • Originally posted by morpheus View Post
              What is RDFRA's current top priority? I believe that it SHOULD be recruitment above all else. Is it though? is that the big ticket item that they constantly push? If not, why not?
              Afaik there is no one top priority as far as I understand, anything that is decided at a ADC/BDC is policy. If 50 items come up... those 50 items needed to be addressed.

              Look at it this way, let’s say the issues are pay delays, lack of warm clothing on scale of issue, etc. We could recruit 1000 people in the morning but (a) we can’t train them as there isn’t enough JNCOs, (b) we can’t retain the JNCOs we do have due to (among many many other things) the issues above (c) we won’t retain those 1000 recruits due to the same issues

              Comment


              • Originally posted by trellheim View Post
                Murf you are assuming its all Line

                several people are occupying specialist roles ( look at COS twitter today for example ) and the potential here should not be underestimated.
                I admit I'm over simplifying it in a effort to quantify what is the actual situation as opposed to numbers be thrown around the place without actually apportion roles to the numbers.

                Again if qualified persons can hold specialist roles this needs to be identified when the figures are thrown out there as opposed to creating the assumption that everything greens is an infantry man.

                The aspiration is to fill all vacancies from private up you can’t do that if you constantly make the establishment smaller
                As I said below privates rank is so transient that it can be aspirational, but a realistic target figure needs to be set and the command structure built around that.... if CSS unit 'X' has a vacancy for an AR tech group great! get it put on the establishment on the unit and rotate it through several people if needs be.... if you don't use it you lose it !

                Recruitment and retention ... the age old issue for the Reserve... but if you are not recruiting a high percentage of your target within a number of years you are dead in the water. In the late 90s there were 7,500 reservists on the books, but on any given day mustering half of that number was miraculous...does the same apply today even though the establishment has been cut by more than half and if not why hasn't the establishment been revised down wards?

                i take the point but the next campaign dates are out and theres no limit on numbers to be recruited ( well there is but you won't hit them )
                Are they even achievable in the first place and by failing to meet them are you not highlighting that the targets are not realistic.?

                Recruitment and retention needs to be incentivised, no more of this volunteer ethos bullshit .... get them in , pay retainers based on attendance and restore decent training time with adequate pay.

                Back in 2003/04/05 when you could do 6 weeks camp and we had exercises of a PSO nature along side PDF units ...it was working.... I came remember 2003/2004 Kilworth being full to bursting and guys competing hard to get places on the ground with exercising troops .....full platoons being deployed as enemy! Squadron sized units being split in two to deploy on concurrent excerises...

                Why did it work... because it paid!

                There was a feel good factor in heading off for three weeks with the same troop of people all working as they felt appreciated and respected...and were paid properly!!!
                Covid 19 is not over ....it's still very real..Hand Hygiene, Social Distancing and Masks.. keep safe

                Comment


                • Originally posted by hptmurphy View Post
                  Again if qualified persons can hold specialist roles this needs to be identified when the figures are thrown out there as opposed to creating the assumption that everything greens is an infantry man.
                  They are identified. They are established positions (in CS4) and if they are in the appointment they are counted against it (not some other unit).

                  There are specialist people in DFHQ on Special Staff, specialists in appointments in DFTC, in Bde HQ and units.

                  There are people who are SWA or holding the appointment of a lower rank (possibly in some cases a higher rank but 100% sure of that) but this is decreasing every year.

                  As I said below privates rank is so transient that it can be aspirational, but a realistic target figure needs to be set and the command structure built around that.
                  based on previous numbers in service it is realistic. The whole point is it is transient due to poor retention. We need people who are active at private rank for absolute min 3 years (bearing in mind it takes approx 2 years to get to 3* line.

                  Recruitment and retention ... the age old issue for the Reserve... but if you are not recruiting a high percentage of your target within a number of years you are dead in the water. In the late 90s there were 7,500 reservists on the books, but on any given day mustering half of that number was miraculous...does the same apply today even though the establishment has been cut by more than half and if not why hasn't the establishment been revised down wards?
                  The units are to blame for that - people kept on the effective list who shouldn’t have been and not discharged when they should have been.


                  Are they even achievable in the first place and by failing to meet them are you not highlighting that the targets are not realistic.?
                  they were in the past

                  Recruitment and retention needs to be incentivised, no more of this volunteer ethos bullshit .... get them in , pay retainers based on attendance and restore decent training time with adequate pay.

                  Back in 2003/04/05 when you could do 6 weeks camp and we had exercises of a PSO nature along side PDF units ...it was working.... I came remember 2003/2004 Kilworth being full to bursting and guys competing hard to get places on the ground with exercising troops .....full platoons being deployed as enemy! Squadron sized units being split in two to deploy on concurrent excerises...

                  Why did it work... because it paid!

                  There was a feel good factor in heading off for three weeks with the same troop of people all working as they felt appreciated and respected...and were paid properly!!!
                  To aid ...... retention!

                  There is no limit to justifiable authorised mandays (the official policy is use them and ask for more, then there are the unofficial unit policies because it involves paperwork). Does that require reform absolutely by it isn’t helped by often RDF people refusing to do their admin.

                  One of the formations actually used all their allocated mandays in 2017, went back for more and guess what? They were given more.

                  Of course the other part of it is people personal availability which will always be an issue.
                  Last edited by DeV; 21 February 2018, 11:19.

                  Comment


                  • They are identified. They are established positions (in CS4) and if they are in the appointment they are counted against it (not some other unit).
                    I don't have access to that document, hence the questions.
                    Covid 19 is not over ....it's still very real..Hand Hygiene, Social Distancing and Masks.. keep safe

                    Comment


                    • Originally posted by apod View Post
                      Why? Because the truth hurts?

                      Read my avatar and carry on.
                      No it just amazes me that someone as experienced as yourself demonstrates such complete ignorance of the officer promotion process in the RDF. You seem to be under this illusion that if a competition was run there would be a completely different list of people promoted. However as you are in the mode of "don't confuse me with the facts my mind is made up" for the benefit of others on the thread this is comparison of the fixed term promotions versus an open competition.

                      Eligibility criteria - It is the same for both fixed term and open competition i.e. number of satisfactory AF451s, attendance at annual training, be recommended for promotion. The open competition has a 60km distance from post restriction (with exceptions) and a corps and brigade restriction (again with some exceptions). The fixed term promotion does not have those restrictions as you are not applying for a specific post and does not require a Captains vacancy to exist.

                      Pool of Eligible People - This process kicked off in 2016 so the fixed term stopped at the 2001 class. The open competition allows for people who are in the rank 5 years (in total 9 years commissioned) to apply. In theory that would allow for the 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 class to apply. HOWEVER there was a significant delay on promotions from 2Lt to Lt therefore the last 3 classes would have been ineligible for the completion as they would not have sufficient time in rank. (This was the basis of the redress that stopped open competition in 2016). I don't know how many people are left from the 2002 and 2003 classes but based on the average rate of attrition it would mean about 30 extra bodies available for interview, assuming they met the attendance criteria.

                      Assessment Process: The board first assesses your 451s and your file and scores you. There is then an interview process but your score cannot change by more than +/- 10%. So no matter how well you come across at your interview, if your file does not reflect how much an outstanding candidate you are, the chances of changing your ranking at interview stage are low. And remember the interview is about talking the talk not walking the walk so it is just as likely that your "tea drinkers" will get an uplift after the interview as your "action man".

                      Then throw into the mix that the 451 process is binary, you are either satisfactory or unsatisfactory. The unit commanders comments tend to be very generic and give very little information to distinguish one candidate from another (This has been a common complaint from the Capt to Comdt interview boards). The information held by COMO is often incomplete and inaccurate, so even if you have done a course it does not mean that the course report is on your file. Despite what APOD said from the names on the list that I recognise over half have completed either a YOs, Standard Officers or Logs Admin course, or have been doing a Captains job for the past 5 years.

                      When you take all that into consideration if you ran an open competition you would in all probabilities end up with exactly the same names. The advantage of going down the fixed term promotion route first is that you reduce the risk of redresses.

                      Comment


                      • Specialist roles have had a lot of success in recent years ; all of the specialist units are screaming for people who can fill jobs ( this is exactly the same as the PDF in most cases )

                        BUt you have to be able to carry the can - you can't go in and get trained up its land with feet running . If you were looking for a Mod4 DROPS and trailer driver off the RDF lad who doesn't have a license thats a long haul to get there ( pun intended ) but a doctor can be effective immediately
                        "Are they trying to shoot down the other drone? "

                        "No, they're trying to fly the tank"

                        Comment


                        • Originally posted by hptmurphy View Post
                          I don't have access to that document, hence the questions.
                          And you don’t because it’s restricted

                          Comment


                          • Holy necro post.Four days to reply back. WTF??

                            Just to clarify,ignorant as you seem to think I am, that my issue is that good people were deliberately excluded from being able to throw their hat in the ring and to at least be considered for promotion.
                            Good people who lost out through no fault of their own.
                            The system was and is at fault.
                            If RDFRA had dug its heels in and represented ALL its members equally I would have no issue.But they didn't and an end run was done around the redress system and people were promoted for promotions sake. Yes.Some people deserved it and fair play to them and if ALL had been able to compete they probably would still have made the grade.
                            But,and it's a big BUT, others have simply been promoted for doing the bare minimum required and will gladly take the pip and the increased paycheck and go back to being ghosts on the books.When the RDF is on its knees can you argue that that is a good thing.Can you?

                            You probably will.
                            "Let us be clear about three facts. First, all battles and all wars are won in the end by the infantryman. Secondly, the infantryman always bears the brunt. His casualties are heavier, he suffers greater extremes of discomfort and fatigue than the other arms. Thirdly, the art of the infantryman is less stereotyped and far harder to acquire in modern war than that of any other arm." ------- Field Marshall Wavell, April 1945.

                            Comment


                            • I have a life (well a wife now).

                              Of course good people have lost out on the opportunity to throw their hat in the ring. They haven't run a competition in 6 years, that's not fair!! 3 classes are excluded from competition because there was a delay in promoting them to Lt, that's not fair. The regulation that allows people to be promoted was ignored for 4 years, that's not fair. Officers files held by COMO are incomplete and they refuse all reasonable requests to amend them, that's not fair. 451s are missing or were never done, which excludes even more people, that's not fair.

                              I don't know why people are crediting RDFRA with getting this across the line. They have singularly uninterested in persuing this topic.

                              The open competition system and annual appraisal process for RDF officers is extremely flawed and does not distinguish between officers to who go above and beyond and those that just tick the boxes. In fact you will probably get across the line if you concentrate on ticking the boxes.

                              Comment


                              • Originally posted by Bravo20 View Post
                                Annual appraisal process for RDF officers is extremely flawed and does not distinguish between officers to who go above and beyond and those that just tick the boxes. In fact you will probably get across the line if you concentrate on ticking the boxes.
                                Going by the ODF reports and the Climate Survey it isn’t just RDF

                                In

                                Comment

                                Working...
                                X