By
Graham Howatt,
Armed Forces Federation The Remuneration Reform Program (RRP)
has highlighted the need for a muchbelated pay review for
Warrant Officers and their equivalents in other Services.
Block 5 of the RRP Phase 3 was presented to the Defence Force
Remuneration Tribunal (DFRT) on May 24.
It sought to address pay placement for WOs and whether that
should be in conjunction with the new banded structure proposed
for officers, remain at the top of the other ranks pay structure
or stand alone.
It became clear during proceedings that before the WO issue
can be properly dealt with, a detailed study must be done
for the ADF to consider the merits of developing a differential
pay structure for WOs and move away from the “common scale”
approach.
The Federation gave support to the conduct of the detailed
study and to the development of a differential pay structure
for WOs that more appropriately recognises the work value
of such a diverse employment group.
To do otherwise would not be consistent with the intent of
the RRP or the Other Rank (OR) structure and continue to deny
appropriate wage justice for WOs.
The Federation did not (and does not) see any need to place
the WOs under the proposed banded pay structure for officers
before the completion of the RRP unless that is the only mechanism
to provide a differential pay structure for them.
We also encouraged the ADF to seek the views of all WOs before
determining the best way ahead and it most pleasing to note
that a dedicated working group has been established for this
purpose.
They were given a very short, if not unrealistic, timeframe
to gain members’ views before preparing for a return to the
DFRT and have been vigorously consulting to achieve this.
Having personally witnessed a roadshow in Canberra, it seems
that ADF management may have underestimated the magnitude
of the exercise and the complexity of the task.
The WOs received very little attention when the OR pay structure
review was conducted in the early to mid-1990s.
Now that the RRP has brought them to the forefront, they should
be given all the time and attention they so rightly deserve
to provide them with a better pay deal.
