Auditor-generals report on NZDF Civilianisation

[ngatimozart]

This the Auditor-Generals report - New Zealand Defence Force: The civilianisation project. As someone elsewhere said it's a kick in the arse for NZDF. The political parties don't want a discourse on defence and it's their policies, especially current govts, that lead to this. NZDF won't admit it has a morale and retention problem. Until NZDF admits to that, faces up to it and starts mitigating for it, they will remain in the crap. The pollies need to realise you cannot run Defence Forces like a business. It does not work nor compute. To quote Spock It is illogical.

[kiwithrottlejockey]

• Auditor-General's overview — New Zealand Defence Force: The civilianisation project.


Just released. Click on the link to read all about it and download the entire report from further links on the webpage.

[phil82]

It is, but probably not entirely the rank and file military, but the boot-lickers at the top. I happen to know one of the guys, a Major, who was civilianised at not a lot of notice, and is now doing the same job in a civilian capacity, with better terms and conditions, and he'll never be posted! Still has the same Paymaster!

[kiwithrottlejockey]

I've seen it all in my industry.

Such as all the staff who were made redundant back in the late-1980s/early-1990s, then when the company was Tranz Rail, various idiot managers (with no railway background, who had been brought in from outside) decided to have a huge chuck-out of all the archived plans, drawings, technical records, etc. Except that after all that stuff had been thrown away (and destroyed) instead of being deposited at the National Archives, they discovered that nobody still working there had complete knowlege of where everything was, including such vital things as signalling cables, power cables, and many other things. So they attempted to hire back some of the staff they had thrown away who had the knowlege of where everything was, except that those former staff then got even by telling the company that "they were now consultants, my fee is $xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx per hour, and take it or leave it!." There is still an electrical contractor in the Hutt Valley who is making megabucks, because he is the only person who knows where a lot of vital stuff is, and he isn't telling, but he IS available to do electrical work at HIS price, "take it or leave it!"

[phil]

No Surprises there.

Now where's the report on MRS? Another resounding success story.

[lesterpk]

And they still havent learnt, I know of one who has left over treatment and lack of help post Hobby MQ tornado.

[themantis]

Jan 30, 2013 16:40:23 GMT 12 phil said:

No Surprises there.

Now where's the report on MRS? Another resounding success story.

Do you mean the remuneration system that just dropped recruit pay by $5K and also decreased the pay of WO2s to such a level that when promoted from SSGT you won't get a pay rise for three years, and even then it's only a few hundred dollars?

Some genius level intellects were involved in producing Rem:2012 and MRS as a whole. It's no wonder morale and manning levels are poor.

[phil]

Not to mention the genius who decided that regionally based MQ rents were a fair idea when salaries are set on a national level.

Auckland rent on Palmerston North pay. Yep, winning formula that one.

[Calum]

That report is quite damning.

Particularly about the way and speed the process was carried out.

Incredibly poor leadership seems to have been shown by the NZDF senior leadership.

As for the pay thing, those of those of my vintage probably remember something simliar called AFPR

[ngatimozart]

It appears that our Great Leader the Minister of Defence is dismissive of the report claiming it's old news. Defence minister plays down scathing report He also was reported in NZ Herald as saying that morale within defence has improved. Well I wonder what he has been smoking because comments I have seen posted elsewhere are saying the exact opposite and if anything more are becoming disenchanted with NZDF and leaving. Our idiot minister is not at all concerned about that now despite the fact that the numbers leaving are now having significant impacts upon NZDFs ability to do it's basic mission. The CDF admitted yesterday that NZDF is planning to reduce the size of the RNZN fleet. So whats going to be left? A Rhib with a .50 cal?

This has implications far and wide and when you have a Minister who is incompetent and doesn't care about his portfolio, plus a govt that is only focussed on making their mates richer, getting re-elected and a budget surplus regardless of the actual cost, then things such as defence are on the junk pile. To top it off Goff said that this govt had gutted NZDF and unfortunately he is right. I hate agreeing with Goff because I used to think he and Burton were the two most incompetent Ministers of Defence NZ ever had. However they have been supplanted by Coleman. It's not only him but also the senior officers and managers in NZDF who have created this mess. They are perceived as being political toadies and have forgotten their loyalty to the troops, airmen and sailors. Their loyalty now is to covering their arses, their political paymasters and bugger the rest. RIP NZDF.

The the implications are that NZDF will no longer be able to function properly as a integrated fighting force unilaterally or within an allied grouping. This has all been bought about by starvation of funds. NZ can afford a four frigate navy and an air combat wing plus funding NZDF at 2% GDP IF both the major political parties actually increased govt revenue through taxation increases, especialy for the wealthy, a capital gains tax and closed down the legal tax avoidance scams. Rant off.

[meo4]

I think reduced naval fleet comment has been misinterpreted its more to,do with reduced output rather than reduced number of hulls.
NZ being a maritime nation 99% of NZs trade travels by sea and
has the fourth largest exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the world, covering 3.8 million square km with a maritime jurisdiction up to 24 times the size of our land area. That's 4% of NZ land mass and the 96% sea lanes.
Going on those figures if the NZDF needed to make cuts I would think the bean counters would look at the land component.
Plus I don't think Jack Steer would allow it on his watch.

[skyhawkdon]

Was reading in the paper this week about China offering to supply Fiji with new naval ships, weapons and uniforms. I wonder if anyone in the NZ Gov't noticed! "Benign strategic environment" Yeah Right! We are going to wish we had an air combat capability in the not too distant future...

[phil82]

Headline for today's [Saturday] editorial in the Dompost:"DEFENCE CHIEFS MASSACRE MORALE".

"The military rank and file have understandably lost confidence in their leaders as a result of an exercise that had all the hallmarks of a botched military campaign. It [civilianisation] was poorly conceived and incompetently executed with non regard for those that who mattered most, the men and women in uniform".

If the Dom's figures are correct,the attrition rate by May last year had soared to 21.1 per cent: one in every five in uniform had walked away!

Gilbert and Sullivan :"I am the very model of a modern Major-General", couldn't have done it better!

[McFly]

The 'Spin'...

Audit report reinforces what you told us

02 Feb 2013

A report into the civilianisation programme by the Office of the Auditor General was released on Wednesday 30 January. The report confirms what you had already told us: we could have handled the change better so that you were not impacted so greatly.

The changes brought about by the civilisation programme contributed to the increase in attrition and lower morale across the organisation. Many of you felt the changes breached the social contract the Defence Force had with you after years of dedicated and loyal service.

The 2010 Defence White Paper outlined the shift to the Total Defence Workforce approach, including the requirement to transfer a significant number of jobs from uniform to civilian posts. While we couldn’t avoid this change, the OAG report indicates we should have approached the changes more gradually to lessen the impact on you.

We have accepted NZDF could have implemented the programme better and with hindsight, if we had to go through this process again, there are many things we would do differently.

This is one of the reasons we altered the civilianisation process at the end of Phase 1 and why we said any future change will be implemented more gradually – largely using attrition rather than redundancy.

I am pleased to note that our latest internal survey results (OAtS) reveal morale has improved for the third quarter in a row. It is not yet at the level of pre-civilianisation, but we are heading in the right direction. In line with morale, and at near pre-civilianisation levels, there has been a reduction in people’s intention to leave for three continuous quarters. Notably attrition rates across NZDF have now fallen from a high of 21.6 percent mid 2012, to 17.7 percent in January.

Looking to the Government-set target for reinvestment in Defence, we remain on track.

These types of results are a credit to the dedication and commitment of all the men and women in the Defence Force.

Lieutenant General Rhys Jones
Chief of Defence Force


See also: rnzaf.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=triservices&thread=18060&page=1

[ngatimozart]

Feb 1, 2013 20:59:44 GMT 12 skyhawkdon said:

Was reading in the paper this week about China offering to supply Fiji with new naval ships, weapons and uniforms. I wonder if anyone in the NZ Gov't noticed! "Benign strategic environment" Yeah Right! We are going to wish we had an air combat capability in the not too distant future...

Have you got a copy of that article Don? I'm quite interested in what China is doing in the south Pacific at the moment. They have their claws in Tonga too.

[Dave Homewood]

Perhaps New Zealand should go the way that Fiji went and militarise the civilian government.... It would be much more efficient.

[ngatimozart]

That Dave is seditious ;D You'll have the secret squirrels following you with meat pies and a copy of Penthouse in their briefcases ;D ;D Anyway if it did happen who would take over as Supreme Leader? Couldn't be anybody that has an Auster. That would make them politically unacceptable ;D ;D

[phil82]

Feb 4, 2013 17:56:25 GMT 12 Dave Homewood said:

Perhaps New Zealand should go the way that Fiji went and militarise the civilian government.... It would be much more efficient.

Fiji is efficient? Since when? It's practically broke, almost totally dependent on handouts and payments from the UN, and has no rule of law.

[ngatimozart]

Feb 4, 2013 19:48:38 GMT 12 phil82 said:

Feb 4, 2013 17:56:25 GMT 12 Dave Homewood said:

Perhaps New Zealand should go the way that Fiji went and militarise the civilian government.... It would be much more efficient.

Fiji is efficient? Since when? It's practically broke, almost totally dependent on handouts and payments from the UN, and has no rule of law.

And that is where the Chinese see an advantage. Arms, ships and uniforms in return for what? What if they ask for portage rights for the PLAN or say basing a Xian H6 reccy bird there? Thankfully they don't operate the Tu 95 Bear because that could fly fromthe PRC to Fiji no trouble. Xian H-6 maybe depends on how big the bomb bay tank is. They have upgraded and modernised the aircraft quite a bit from the original Tu 16 badger. If they manage to operate H6s out of Fiji then that leaves NZ open to unauthorised over flights and we have nothing to stop them. If the Chinese ever establish a PLAN base in Port Moresby that creates another security issue. They will want to establish airborne maritime coverage especially because of the proximity of Australia. That coverage also would cover NZ and no NZ air combat force no deterence for Chinese aggression.

Since the change of President and General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, all one person, China has been more assertive and strident inasserting its perceived rights in the China Sea and environs. It has also more openly told other countries to butt out, the latest being Australia over its closer military ties with Japan. The current President, Xi Jinping, has told the PLA to prepare for war. He is more militant than his predecessor, Wen Jaiobao, and he and the Politburo have some domestic issues that they are having trouble dealing with.

The main one being corruption and having said that corruption will be jumped on, the general public are circumventing Party attempts to repress the information and are demanding it to be acted upon. Unfortunately for the Politburo accusations of corruption have reached to its hallowed levels and appear to be difficult to whitewash at the moment. Hence possibly this rattling of sabres at all foreign devils. That is one scenario.

Another one and far more worrying is that they are deadly serious about their China Seas claims and will not retreat one cm from them no matter how spurious the claim. If push comes to shove they won't backdown and will back their claims with force of arms. The Japanese will not back down on any of the Islands they lay claim to either, especially if the Chinese are involved. Prime Minister Abe is more of a hawk so if he can get support of his party in parliament and keep it then things could get interesting.

[Dave Homewood]

I wasn't saying that Fiji is efficient. I meant that the military, who have been screwed tighter and tighter with less and less funding and yet still expected to do their jobs well, and do, must surely be far more efficient and a better bunch to run the country than the bunch of people doing the screwing, the Government Departments.