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Signing Bonus - Engineering Officers

  • Thread starter Thread starter rceme_rat
  • Start date Start date
The majority of DEO candidates do not receive a signing bonus.  The Canadian Forces is not a charity nor is it in the habit of reimbursing scholastic education that is required for employment.
 
Personally, I'm about $15,000 through my BA with $5000 to go, and I'm so damn nervous and anxious to get into the forces I'd gladly pay them for the sweet, warm, comforting release of a job offer  ;D
 
I have an application underway for Reg. Forces Engineer Officer under the DEO entry plan and just realized that the $40k recruitment allowance associated with this trade has disappeared from the CF's recruiting page. The link where this information used to be found is the following:  (http://www.recruiting.forces.gc.ca/engraph/army/bonuses_e.aspx?bhfv=8&bhqs=1). Can anyone confirm the fact that DND has put a stop to this recruitment allowance? If so, would you have the date at which the change was enacted?

Needless to say that I'm a bit upset about this - I know money isn't all and that fact alone should not alter my decision to try a career in the military, but this signature bonus would have covered my university fees...
 
mcchartman said:
I have an application underway for Reg. Forces Engineer Officer under the DEO entry plan and just realized that the $40k recruitment allowance associated with this trade has disappeared from the CF's recruiting page. The link where this information used to be found is the following:  (http://www.recruiting.forces.gc.ca/engraph/army/bonuses_e.aspx?bhfv=8&bhqs=1). Can anyone confirm the fact that DND has put a stop to this recruitment allowance? If so, would you have the date at which the change was enacted?

Needless to say that I'm a bit upset about this - I know money isn't all and that fact alone should not alter my decision to try a career in the military, but this signature bonus would have covered my university fees...

The bonus has not been approved for this year and therefore it is not being offered or advertised at this time.
 
The bonus has not been approved for this year and therefore it is not being offered or advertised at this time.

I apologize in advance for being picky on the words, but was that meant as "it is not offered at this time until we receive official approval later in the year" (which I understand is nothing guaranteed) or was it rather meant as "it is not offered for this fiscal year, better luck for next year". Since we are already in june, I would imagine that a response would have been received by now, being more than 2 months into the fiscal year - but I still have to ask. Thanks in advance.
 
Although the treasury board has not convened to determine what trades, if any, will be offered signing bonuses this fiscal year, the fact is that the recruiting system did offer them, and has since pulled them back.  I applied for a component transfer to Signals Officer in Jan 06 and received my offer on 07 Apr 06 which included a Recruiting Allowance.  24 Hrs prior to my enrolment date (8 Jun 06), CFRG sent a new offer removing the RA from the offer, which I guess they did for everyone that was offered an RA after 1 Apr 06 with the exception of Medical Officers.  If they had known prior to 1 Apr 06 they would not have offered the RAs, and if they found out any sooner than a few days before my enrollment date would they not have a told me then?  
Currently the CBIs state that pers applying for understrength engineering trades who meet the requirements are to receive a 40000 RA - whether it's on the Recruiting website or not is irrelevant.  I personally believe that if the offer was made, and accepted, in good faith then it should be honored.  If the signing bonus had never been offered I would have enrolled regardless, but the fact is that according to their own administrative orders I am entitled to it, so why shouldn't I fight for it?  I know plenty of people working as civilian engineers and they are compensated for their education - it's called a higher salary, plus there is that little issue of unlimited liability which they don't have to worry about.  I'm joining to serve my country, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to fight for what my country has said I'm entitled to.  Just like I would fight for my subordinates to get everything they are entitled to.  At this point for me it is just as much about the recruiting system doing the "Right" thing for everyone whose offer they have altered, as it is about getting the RA.
 
Stop blaming the recruiting system.  Blame the Treasury Board.  The rule is if the bonus is in effect when you apply but not in effect when you enrol then you don't get the bonus.  When you applied the bonus was good until Apr 06 and now it isn't.
 
kincanucks said:
The rule is if the bonus is in effect when you apply but not in effect when you enrol then you don't get the bonus. 
. . . and you had better not expect a penny if the plan expired yesterday, you signed today, and the plan is renewed tomorrow.
 
It appears the $40k incentive for engineers is back, or so I've been told. Let me explain...

Today there is this big job fair at the University of Ottawa, and while I was heading to one of my morning courses, I passed the CF information booth. BEHOLD! Behind the recruiters, there was a banner with a big '40,000' printed on it, as well as the trades to which it applied, with engineer (24) at the very top of the list. After my course, I went to the booth to get some explanations and spoke with a recruiting officer over there who told me the same thing kincanucks explained earlier in this thread - EXCEPT it appears things have changed recently. According to him, the needs for engineers proved simply too great and they received the go-ahead to promote this $40k incentive this year as well.

I made sure to ask if I was still eligible for it, being already in the system (although I haven't signed my offer yet) and he assured me there wouldn't be any problem. Apparently, the way it works is just like it did for some years now... you get the first half (or so) upon graduating from St-Jean and the rest at the 2nd anniversary of your graduation.

Can anyone confirm this? Needless to say it comes as a huge surprise to me.

EDIT - I forgot to mention: there doesn't appear to be anything about this on the CF recruiting website yet, hence my question.
 
On a related note: CANFORGEN 127/06 has announced that you will be eligible for a singing bonus if that bonus is in force when you apply to enrol or CT or is in force on the date you enrol or CT.

Excerpt follows:

3.  RECRUITMENT ALLOWANCE POLICIES. EFFECTIVE 1 APR 05, THE AMENDMENTS TO REF B WILL MODIFY THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA SO THAT A CF MEMBER IS ENTITLED TO A RECRUITMENT ALLOWANCE IF THEIR SELECTED OCCUPATION IS ON THE LIST OF UNDERSTRENGTH OCCUPATIONS ON THE DATE THEY APPLY TO ENROL IN THE CF, OR APPLY FOR COMPONENT TRANSFER, OR THE DATE THEY ARE ACTUALLY ENROLLED IN OR TRANSFERRED TO THE REGULAR FORCE

 
DanDaMan said:
Does anybody know if this is still in effect now or next year?

Don't see it on the website but the best place to ask is your local CFRC/D.
 
Hooray for necroposting!

I've heard more recently that the signing bonus for engineering officers are no longer being done. I'm going into the Navy, if that makes any difference.
 
TcDohl said:
I've heard more recently that the signing bonus for engineering officers are no longer being done. I'm going into the Navy, if that makes any difference.

Nope, doesn't make a difference ... no signing bonus for Engineering in 2009.

Otis
 
At NOAB I asked specifically about signing bonuses, they said probably not again until 2011, some sort of spending freeze or something.

Oh well, I'm still gonna do it  :salute:
 
That's terrible. This is a bit of the "keeping up with the Joneses" syndrome, but a friend who is going into the USN is getting 100% of her tuition reimbursed when she enlists after she graduates. Not as an officer by the way, and she said that she isn't doing an NROTC.

Good ol' Canada, who attracts top talent to her armed forces.

Well, I hope by the time I finish BMOQ, they'll have the bonuses back :3
 
TcDohl said:
That's terrible. This is a bit of the "keeping up with the Joneses" syndrome, but a friend who is going into the USN is getting 100% of her tuition reimbursed when she enlists after she graduates. Not as an officer by the way, and she said that she isn't doing an NROTC.

Good ol' Canada, who attracts top talent to her armed forces.

Well, I hope by the time I finish BMOQ, they'll have the bonuses back :3

Perhaps the US Military's nature of "throwing money at it" (money for taking the earliest's BCT, money for signing a longer contract, money for re-signing contracts, money for agreeing to certain jobs or units, and I could go on) is responsible for the apparently large population that's dissatisfied with that country's Military?

Performing a search for "I want out of the <Service>" or "I hate the <Service>" inevitably pulls up results of many disgruntled Servicemen and women searching for loopholes to get out.

Perhaps this belongs in another thread (and Mods feel free to split it off), but it's just something to think about when you consider bonuses (or lack thereof.)
 
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