Page 13 - Signal Summer 2019

negatively impacts on operational capability, is wasteful of limited manpower and financial resources and merely akin to filling the leaky bucket school of recruitment – you cannot recruit your way out of a retention crisis when fundamental tenets of that career are denied.
Since DOD’s declaration in 2017, RACO has commenced advising post-2013 members of the need to review their future career and pension options when they reach their mid-30s.
In its final verbal submission to the PSPC in Mar 2019, RACO stated that the single biggest factor negatively effecting retention in the DF and the future viability of the DF is the removal of the supplementary pension from post-2013 entrants.
It was now necessary to prove to Government, DoD and the PSPC in an evidence-based manner that the single biggest factor negatively affecting retention is the loss of the supplementary pension. RACO had already engaged Trident Consulting and forwarded their report to the PSPC in Mar 2017, but this merely set out the detail and did not capture members’ wider career intentions.
Amárach Research Survey
Despite this quite damning report on non-viable pensions by leading industry experts, the National Executive felt there remained a requirement to further provide evidence-based data of the escalating retention risks and the turnover intention of post- 2013 officers. Hence in February 2019, Amárach Research was retained by RACO to survey members “to gain an understanding of their attitudes to these new rules and gain insight into what actions their members will take in the future”.
622 members responded to the survey which highlighted the changes in pension T&Cs for post-2013 entrants, which will in effect force commissioned officers to retire early without adequate pension entitlements, unlike other parts of the public service.
Findings of Amárach Research
The survey findings were stark, and were widely reported in the Irish Times, Independent, Examiner, local papers, on RTÉ Drivetime and local radio, and on numerous online publications. They showed that 79% of recently inducted commissioned officers are planning to leave the DF early due to the lack of a viable career path as a result of Government policies, including the lack of a supplementary pension under the Single Pension Scheme.
The report advanced a number of additional key insights;
• 21% of respondents see themselves retiring at or before the age of 35
• A further 19% see themselves retiring between the ages of 36 and 40.
• When analysed by age;
• 43% of those aged 18-25 will retire between the ages of 30- 35. Among those aged 26-35, 28% see themselves retiring between 30-35, and 29% see themselves retiring between 36-40.
• 90% of respondents would consider retiring from the Defence Forces before their mandatory retirement age.
| AMÁRACH SURVEY |
• For those that are considering retiring from the DF, 55% said that the SPS had a high or very high impact on their decision.
• For those aged 18-25, this rose to 69% of respondents, and 61% of 26-35 year olds.
• Among those who were inducted between 2013 and 2019, 79% of respondents said the SPS had a high or very high impact on their decision.
• 57% of respondents said career potential and 53% said domestic and personal commitments were triggers for leaving the DF, with 40% stating that the SPS was a trigger.
• Among those aged 18-25, the SPS was a trigger for 66%, and 48% of those aged 26-35. This is to be expected, as this age group are the ones that are primarily affected by the SPS.
• The SPS is an issue because pay alone cannot meet the needs of members retiring before state pension age.
• When given a chance to voice their concerns, respondents consistently mentioned that the SPS would lead to significant loss of experienced officers, as they would be unable to meet their financial needs following their mandatory retirement age.
• Many feel as though loyalty is being punished, and their trust is being eroded.
• Many predict that large numbers of officers will leave the DF in their thirties, so that they have adequate time to save for a pension.
Implications of Departmental Response
As verbally stated to the PSPC in March 2019, the implication is quite clear. The lack of adequate pension provisions for the post-2013 cohort means that a majority of them feel they have no long-term future in the Defence Forces and will not stay long enough to develop and progress up the ranks and populate the chronic shortages at middle management level (Comdt – Lt Col). These are vital ranks as it is at a time in their careers when officers would normally fill command leadership roles and be called upon to drive strategy development and implementation in the Formations and DFHQ. The continued expensive and unprecedent level of cadet and recruit induction which is detracting from operational capability will have been for nothing!
Based on the Trident and Amárach reports, RACO has asked the PSPC to recommend to Government the reinstatement of CCR.421, thereby giving post-2013’s a viable military career and retirement.
In putting the same proposition to Minister Kehoe, although he stated that he is currently committed to solving DF pay issues and can only approach the Minister for Public Expenditure and reform with one issue at a time, he recognises this threat to DF viability and has committed to addressing it as a priority once the Pay Commission reports.
RACO keenly awaits the second report of the PSPC. It has been a long time coming. Not since the Gleeson commission has a report been so critically needed to restore not just pay, but pensions, so that the post-2013 entrant can have a viable career.
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