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(from the Ottawa Citizen)
Retirements put Forces in 'crisis' of experience: New recruits can't replace
erosion of veterans' knowledge
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With experienced soldiers already leaving the ranks and a large number of
personnel soon coming up for early retirement, the Canadian Forces is in the
midst of an "experience crisis" that isn't expected to ease up until 2012,
according to an army report.
The current lack of experienced and knowledgeable soldiers in the military can
be traced back to the large-scale downsizing of the Armed Forces ordered by
governments in the 1990s, as well as the decision by the senior leadership to
almost stop recruiting during that period, explains a report produced by the
army in November and recently obtained by the Citizen.
And a former military officer who tried to warn the Defence Department about
the problem several years ago says the election promises by both the Liberals
and Conservatives to boost the size of the military will not change the
situation.
"This dearth of talent will limit the Canadian Forces' ability to expand for at
least the next seven years," said Howie Marsh, a retired colonel who was the
army's command inspector.
"As an institution we didn't realize what we were doing," he added. "Now we
have to pay the piper."
Both the Conservative and Liberal governments cut the military in the 1990s as
they sought a "peace dividend" after the end of the Cold War. The effect of
those cuts is still being felt, according to the army report, and will get
worse as a large group of military personnel approaches 20 years of service and
is eligible for retirement.
"Current modelling for officers shows that the (Canadian Forces) is currently
in a knowledge and experience crisis that will continue until at least 2012,"
the army report concludes.
"The forecast for (non-commissioned members) is just as bad with full recovery
not expected until 2012."
The information is based on another study done for the chief of defence staff
in early 2003.
But Col. Craig Fletcher, the director of military employment policy, says the
Canadian Forces has been aware of the problem for some time and the situation
isn't at a crisis level yet.
"I think there's potential, certainly," he said. "If nothing is done about it,
there would be a serious problem."
But Col. Fletcher said the Armed Forces is in the midst of putting together new
policies designed to convince those with experience to stay in the military
longer.
It is changing its compulsory retirement age from 55 to 60. It is also working
on a new pension scheme that would make it financially desirable for military
personnel to continue working until they have 25 years of service.
Currently, members of the military can retire at 20 years of service with a
pension of 40 per cent of their salary. Under the new scheme, they would retire
at 25 years service with 50 per cent of their salary.
In addition, the Armed Forces will also continue to make use of experienced
reserve troops to fill in some of the gaps in personnel.
The size of the Canadian military shrank by 25 per cent in the 1990s. On paper,
the Canadian Forces is now around 61,000, but in reality the number of active
military personnel ranges from 52,000 to 54,000.
Conservative leader Stephen Harper has promised to add 27,600 soldiers if
elected.
The Liberals have promised to increase the military by 8,000 if re-elected.
That includes boosting the size of the reserves from 15,500 to 18,500,
something that was promised under former defence minister John McCallum, but
never carried out. The Liberals would also create a 5,000-member brigade to
bolster peacekeeping capabilities.
But Mr. Marsh said to meet either the Liberal or Conservative promises,
military training schools would have to be expanded. But the ongoing problem is
that the units have been continually sent on overseas missions and many
soldiers responsible for training recruits are serving on the front-lines, Mr.
Marsh noted.
The army report noted that the main lesson learned from the cuts of the 1990s
is that the military is always in need of new recruits and it is not prudent to
limit or stop recruitment even if reductions are under way.
In addition, a related study conducted by the Defence Department and aimed at
detailing the "individual wellness" of military personnel found that stress is
increasing in the Canadian Forces and the number of mental health-related cases
has increased three-fold in the last three years. That was attributed to more
frequent overseas missions as well as better diagnosis of such cases.
"There are early indicators that the overall individual 'wellness' in the CF is
average because stress and mental health injuries are increasing and personal
and operational tempo are stressing the family, which leads to more releases,"
the study notes.
Around 51 per cent of military personnel who took part in the study rated their
quality of life, or QQL, as good or very good.
"QQL was broken into seven domains and career satisfaction received the lowest
rating due to poor senior leadership," it noted.
Retirements put Forces in 'crisis' of experience: New recruits can't replace
erosion of veterans' knowledge
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With experienced soldiers already leaving the ranks and a large number of
personnel soon coming up for early retirement, the Canadian Forces is in the
midst of an "experience crisis" that isn't expected to ease up until 2012,
according to an army report.
The current lack of experienced and knowledgeable soldiers in the military can
be traced back to the large-scale downsizing of the Armed Forces ordered by
governments in the 1990s, as well as the decision by the senior leadership to
almost stop recruiting during that period, explains a report produced by the
army in November and recently obtained by the Citizen.
And a former military officer who tried to warn the Defence Department about
the problem several years ago says the election promises by both the Liberals
and Conservatives to boost the size of the military will not change the
situation.
"This dearth of talent will limit the Canadian Forces' ability to expand for at
least the next seven years," said Howie Marsh, a retired colonel who was the
army's command inspector.
"As an institution we didn't realize what we were doing," he added. "Now we
have to pay the piper."
Both the Conservative and Liberal governments cut the military in the 1990s as
they sought a "peace dividend" after the end of the Cold War. The effect of
those cuts is still being felt, according to the army report, and will get
worse as a large group of military personnel approaches 20 years of service and
is eligible for retirement.
"Current modelling for officers shows that the (Canadian Forces) is currently
in a knowledge and experience crisis that will continue until at least 2012,"
the army report concludes.
"The forecast for (non-commissioned members) is just as bad with full recovery
not expected until 2012."
The information is based on another study done for the chief of defence staff
in early 2003.
But Col. Craig Fletcher, the director of military employment policy, says the
Canadian Forces has been aware of the problem for some time and the situation
isn't at a crisis level yet.
"I think there's potential, certainly," he said. "If nothing is done about it,
there would be a serious problem."
But Col. Fletcher said the Armed Forces is in the midst of putting together new
policies designed to convince those with experience to stay in the military
longer.
It is changing its compulsory retirement age from 55 to 60. It is also working
on a new pension scheme that would make it financially desirable for military
personnel to continue working until they have 25 years of service.
Currently, members of the military can retire at 20 years of service with a
pension of 40 per cent of their salary. Under the new scheme, they would retire
at 25 years service with 50 per cent of their salary.
In addition, the Armed Forces will also continue to make use of experienced
reserve troops to fill in some of the gaps in personnel.
The size of the Canadian military shrank by 25 per cent in the 1990s. On paper,
the Canadian Forces is now around 61,000, but in reality the number of active
military personnel ranges from 52,000 to 54,000.
Conservative leader Stephen Harper has promised to add 27,600 soldiers if
elected.
The Liberals have promised to increase the military by 8,000 if re-elected.
That includes boosting the size of the reserves from 15,500 to 18,500,
something that was promised under former defence minister John McCallum, but
never carried out. The Liberals would also create a 5,000-member brigade to
bolster peacekeeping capabilities.
But Mr. Marsh said to meet either the Liberal or Conservative promises,
military training schools would have to be expanded. But the ongoing problem is
that the units have been continually sent on overseas missions and many
soldiers responsible for training recruits are serving on the front-lines, Mr.
Marsh noted.
The army report noted that the main lesson learned from the cuts of the 1990s
is that the military is always in need of new recruits and it is not prudent to
limit or stop recruitment even if reductions are under way.
In addition, a related study conducted by the Defence Department and aimed at
detailing the "individual wellness" of military personnel found that stress is
increasing in the Canadian Forces and the number of mental health-related cases
has increased three-fold in the last three years. That was attributed to more
frequent overseas missions as well as better diagnosis of such cases.
"There are early indicators that the overall individual 'wellness' in the CF is
average because stress and mental health injuries are increasing and personal
and operational tempo are stressing the family, which leads to more releases,"
the study notes.
Around 51 per cent of military personnel who took part in the study rated their
quality of life, or QQL, as good or very good.
"QQL was broken into seven domains and career satisfaction received the lowest
rating due to poor senior leadership," it noted.
:gunner: :fifty: :threat: 
