New personnel regulations to come into force will have little, if any, noticeable effect on people currently serving.

But they will give wider options for CA to meet future needs.

The regulations will provide greater flexibility for career management personnel who will be less bound by prescriptive regulations in force until now.

The new Defence (Personnel) Regulations 2002 replace the relevant sections of the Defence Act, Naval Defence Act, Naval Force Regulations, Australian Military Regulations and Air Force Regulations.

The acting Director General Career Management Policy Col Ross Boyd said Defence (Personnel) Regulations 2002 provide a standard framework across all three Services and the document will the be sole legislative source of authority for personnel matters such as appointments and enlistment, promotion, transfer and termination, resignation and discharge.

Examples of some of the changes include: the ability to offer limited-tenure promotion to the rank of lieutenant-colonel or higher and to WO1; and management-initiated early retirement can now also be used for major or higher and WO2 or higher.

While there is no change to the Compulsory Retirement Age (CRA) of 55 for members of the ARA, CA will have greater discretion to extend their service to up to age 65 under the new regulations.

For the ARes, the new CRA will be 60. CA will have the discretion to extend this to a maximum age of 65. There is provision to retain a current CRA but this election has to be made before reaching that age. Those wishing to serve to the new CRA need do nothing.

Under the new regulations, chaplains, including those in the ARA, will have their retirement age extended from 55 to 60, with an extension to 65. The option of further extensions, in no more than two-year increments, to a maximum age of 75, will be available for ARes chaplains.

Those officers who elected to retain their previous CRA under previous changes made to the CRA in 1994/95 (only lieutenant-colonel rank and below were affected), retain that CRA; however, the new regulations allow them to apply for the new CRA.

While the new regulations cover all forms of military service, much is directed at providing greater flexibility in terms of employment of reserves to achieve the Defence mission.

• The new categories of reserves are the:
• High Readiness Active Reserve
• High Readiness Specialist Reserve
• Active Reserve
• Specialist Reserve
• The Standby Reserve (replacing the Inactive Reserve)

Only the Standby Reserve is mandatory for all three Services. Army will be retaining the Active Reserve and the CA is considering what other categories of reserves will be raised.

All current reservists became members of either the Active Reserve or Standby Reserve on December 1.

Those serving in the ARA who have the option of joining the reserves on discharge, will now have the option of joining the Standby Reserve for an open-ended period continuing until they reach CRA, as will those in other forms of the ARes.

All people joining the ARA or active categories of the ARes from July 1, 2003, will automatically be transferred for five years to the Standby Reserve from the time they complete their service obligation.

Members of the Standby Reserve will have an obligation to advise of any change in contact details but will have no service or training obligation except in time of war or defence emergency.

• For further information, look up http://scaletext.law.gov.au/html/numrul/19/9573/top.htm

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