Personnel

Set your sights
By Col Ash Gunder

Volume 11, No. 60, February 22, 2007
 
Aim high: Soldiers who have set their sights on scoring a retention bonus will have to wait for the eligibility criteria to be approved.
Photo by Cpl Michael Davis
LAST edition there was generic detail of the Army retention bonuses to be offered to members to encourage them to remain within Army for an extended period.

Members will only be able to claim either the Army Rank Expansion or the Critical Employment Category retention bonus. These are payable to all members who meet the eligibility criteria and elect to receive them.

Now let’s look broadly at how the Rank Expansion and the Critical Employment bonuses will be processed and paid to those who take up one of the offers.

Step 1 – Identification of target groups

In due course the eligibility criteria will be signed off by the Personnel Executive and this will form the basis of determining who in Army is eligible for each of the bonuses. Eligibility will be placed on the website at this time.
Information packs are being prepared and will be provided as soon as possible.

Step 2 – Offer to members

On receipt of the package from their CO/OC, members will have the information they need to seek independent financial advice and consider their choices.

Included in the package will be an election form to complete within 90 days of offer. Members on deployment at the time of offer can elect while deployed or defer the deadline for election until 90 days after their return to Australia.

Step 3 – Processing and payment

A member’s election will be processed through the unit and be recorded on PMKeyS. A PMKeyS record is essential as incentive payments will be made within the first 12 months of acceptance of the offer, but completion payments will be generated up to four years later. Once recorded, payment will be approved and the money will be delivered through the member’s ADFPAY account.

The estimated time frame between election and first payment of bonuses should be no greater than 90 days. Payment times will be dependent on the particular bonus elected.

Step 4 – Reporting

The final step is the reporting on the take-up rate of the bonuses and their impact on Army’s strength. Known requirements are being built into the process to reduce the level of manual reporting required at the unit level.

FURTHER DOWN RANGE

In a non-Army group or environment?
Those in a non-Army group up to and including the rank of major have an Army officer designated as their administering commanding officer in accordance with DI(A) Admin 3-2. The reporting chain can be checked by going to http://intranet.defence.gov.au/armyweb/Sites/DFSA/ – select ‘Personnel Documents’ from Publications/Orders and scroll down to ‘List of Establishment & Allocation of ACOs for Non-Army Group’ as at January 15.

What next?
Further information will be provided through sitreps to the chain of command, in the next Army newspaper and through the Stay Army website (http://intranet.defence.gov.au/armyweb/. Those with questions can speak to their chain of command or email milpersadmin.army@defence.gov.au and FAQs will be posted on the website. If you think you are eligible and have not been contacted by March 31, speak to your chain of command or email milpersadmin.army@defence.gov.au.