Letters to the editor

Letters to the editor

SCMA shapes trade trainees

September 27,2001

SCMA is responsible for shaping the careers of all the soldiers in the Army, therefore their lives.

I am currently posted to Northern Logistic Group, Bulimba as a trainee. I put in my posting preferences about four months ago as I am due to leave on August 1.

The date today is July 31 and I have still not received my posting order. I am not the only one with the problem.

There is about four or five of us due to leave around the same time and the other guys just received their posting orders. I know of one person that received his posting order eight days after he was due to start at his new unit. Another person received his the same day that he was due to start at his new unit and that's just to name two.

In our cases the excuse that was given to the Training WO was that the warrant officer compiling the postings was in Townsville and therefore unable to process the postings. Surely this person knew that he was going away and could have completed his work in advance. One man going away from the office would not effectively shut down one whole part of SCMA.

I am not asking to always get my first preference on posting or even my second - I'm just asking for a little notice. Everybody knows the hassle involved in marching-out, organising removals and so on. All I want is to be able to organise my life - albeit around the Army- in advance.

SCMA should take into account that soldiers have a life and that everyone can not just drop everything they are doing and move without decent notice.

I know that as a soldier I am expected to be able to deploy and carry out orders with minimal notice in war-like situations. This is not one of those situations, so why not give us a little notice.

The posting order in question was released from SCMA on July 27 with a march-in date of August 26, so it was not quite as late out of SCMA as the member thought.

I do acknowledge however, that this is still unreasonably short if household removals, wives' employment and childrens' schooling are issues.

This situation is peculiar to trade trainees. It arises because the date on which a trade trainee completes his or her training is not fixed. It can vary according to the aptitude of each trainee.

The RAEME Career Manager will raise a posting order to post the craftsman from the training unit to the gaining unit as close to the end of training as possible.

This reduces both the time the craftsman spends waiting in the training unit after becoming qualified, and the time that the gaining unit has to carry the vacancy.

From 2002, trade training for RAEME ground trades will be conducted in just four locations. It will be administered by ALTC through Technical Training Management Officers (TTMOs) posted to the Regional Training Centre.

SCMA expects more timely advice of when trainees will graduate, and will issue posting orders four to six months in advance.

The RAEME Career Manager has raised posting orders for all ground-trades trainees who are expected to graduate before January 2002, who have provided SCMA with a PR66-1 and whose TTMO has provided an expected completion date.

Some of these posting orders are still being processed in SCMA. If you are a RAEME trade trainee and have any concerns about your future posting, speak to your local TTMO first. The TTMOs are: Sydney WO2 Dare, (02) 9600 4467; Brisbane WO2 Spencer, (07) 3332 4292; Townsville WO2 Clarke, (07) 47711305; Bandiana (until end 2001) WO2 Rocco, (03) 6055 2453, Darwin yet to be appointed.