Low levels of pay is the biggest issue facing new recruits to the Defence Forces, the representative body for its members has said.
Permanent Defence Force Other Ranks Representative Association (PDforra) general secretary Gerry Rooney told Minister of State for Defence Paul Kehoe that the pay rates for those who enlisted in the Army, Naval Service and the Air Corps after 2013 is a hugely important issue.
Speaking at the association's annual conference in Cork, Mr Rooney said that new entrants to the Defence Forces, who joined after 2013 are paid €21,800, and it was notable that one fifth of members of the Defence Forces were in receipt of family income supplement.
Mr Rooney told Mr Kehoe that the issue of pay must be addressed for the youngest members of the Defence Forces, as these recruits represent the future of the organisation.
"The problem must be very apparent to even the most casual observer and the high turnover levels from the 2013 entrants generally and the massive turnover levels in the Naval Service specifically - the situation is alarming to PDforra and it should be alarming to you," he told Mr Kehoe.
Naval Service
The situation was particularly disturbing for members of the Naval Service, he said, many of whom were being paid less than the national minimum wage of €9.15 per hour, as they were working longer hours while on missions in the Mediterranean when they are on standby without pay.
“This is a disgraceful situation Minister and you should be intervening to resolve it and ensure these young people receive a fair wage,” Mr Rooney said.
Lansdowne Road Agreement
He said that PDforra would not abandon this section of its membership and therefore the association was not in a position to sign up to the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) and would not be pressurised into signing up to the agreement, regardless of the Government’s actions.
“Can I now suggest that you commence the process of bringing forward the agreed pay increases under the Lansdowne Road Agreement to the present as a way of addressing the serious injustices in pay that cannot be denied,” said Mr Rooney.
Mr Kehoe said that he was committed to ensuring that members of the Permanent Defence Forces are “fully recompensed, fairly and transparently, in the same manner as the members of all other associations who have signed up to the Lansdowne Road Agreement.”
“While I understand that your Association has not to date signed up the LRA, I cannot stress enough the need to sign up to the agreement so as to avail of its protections and the programmed restoration of pay cuts,” he said.
Mr Kehoe said that since coming into office, one of his key priorities was ensuring that Ireland has a fully staffed Defence Force and he was working directly with the Chief of Staff, Vice Admiral Mark Mellett and his department officials to ensure the strength of 9,500 is reached as soon as possible.
Defence Forces survey
The 130 conference delegates also heard from the PDforra president Mark Scally, who spoke of the problems identified in a recent survey of the Defence Forces: “Climate survey - wellbeing in the Defence Forces.”
Among the problems identified in the survey were a perception among enlisted personnel that there is a distinct lack of justice in relation to discipline procedures.
Other concerns included commuting, work-life balance, pay levels and stress, all of which needed to be addressed, Mr Scally said.
Mr Scally said that he believed that the biggest failing in the PDforra-Military Authorities relationship was in the organisation of work areas, which reflected a substantial failing by management which relies on the military ‘can do’ approach, more than proper planning.
“Not only does this lead to unplanned, long and unsocial hours being worked by PDforra members, it also gives rise to perceptions of bias, favouritism and bullying. The fact our members’ working lives are organised in this chaotic fashion does not instil confidence in military management.”
Mr Scally said that long commuting distances were having a particularly detrimental effect on the morale of young members, aged 18 to 21.
“The cost of living drains the low wages they receive with the result a lot of them leave.
“It is my view that the majority of serving members now treat the Defence Forces as a job, not as a vocation anymore and over time, this change in attitude will have an impact on the Defence Forces and those in authority have a responsibility to take some action before it is too late,” he said.
