Army / Naval Reservists and employment issues

Bam Bam

Do you own / run a business?

Are there reservists on the payroll? Do you know?

Do you have problems with them asking for time off?

Do you know what they'll be doing for this time off?

Do you try to support them for being in the reserve or see it as more of a hinderence on their employment?

Do you see the reserve as a worth while organisation or a waste of time?

In your view is it an effective arm of the Defence Forces or just a social club?

Discuss

mcguiver

I run a small business and am a former reservist, (so am probably biased.)

I think the theory of being a reservist is good, but the standard from unit to unit varies dramatically..from part time military to cheap drinking clubs.

The British Territorial model seems to work better.

In the past I have employed reservists, and when I see that on a cv I automatically throw in a few bland questions about their training.. see if they start waffling and then ask them to give me the specifications of the BAP, FN, Gustaf for example. Always gives me a good laugh when they spoof away and then go quiet when I can still rattle off my T.O.E.T. many years later.
"Nine mil rimless ball round,Two pounds two ounces unloaded, 2 pounds 8 ounces fully loaded, 4 and 3 quarter inch barrell, 8 inches overall, standard magazine capacity.....blah blah blah"

I think it's an advantage to an employee...they've teamwork experience, have volunteered their time to their community etc. I always try to accomodate their time off etc... but in the past have been told by members thats its compulsary that they be allowed time off. (Which of course it isn't)

woody

At the moment the RDF is a playground for Walter Mittys and Cheap Drink Bingers, I am off course Skeptical as doing it for a job (soldiering) is a serious business.


But they have no defined role in the overall Defences Plan and are merely a Political Entity, Now if they trained them correctly as the TA and Legislation was brought into the Dail whereby there jobs would be protected when they are oversea's fine.

But this wont happen to soon.

When we had to train the FCA know it all in PDF recruit Platoons you had to deprogramme them from Bullsh1t walter mitty mode to Normal Infantry Solider mode, they had big ego's and were crap soliders unlike Joe Bloggs of the street.

Every camp that they have that I have seen is a week or forthnight of drinking and moronic activity and a total waste of tax payers money.

Bam Bam

Hardly a waste of time.

Annual camp is the only time the RDF can preform very involved training.
The training is tense and stressful.

All PDF know that even they let their hair down after a stressful exercise.

But because we're reserves we're not allowed? Thats ridiculous.

woody

Bam Bam wrote:

Hardly a waste of time.

Annual camp is the only time the RDF can preform very involved training.
The training is tense and stressful.

All PDF know that even they let their hair down after a stressful exercise.

But because we're reserves we're not allowed? Thats ridiculous.

The do it all the time, from the start of camp to the end and if your poor old me BOS and having to deal with drunkness on a large scale it is not funny, by all means let your hair down but they take the pi5s by and large.

angry2day

woody. your the man. none of them know anything. they are all hormone/alcohol driven wastes of money and resources. none of them ever experienced introduction to the glen, they might say they did but they really didn't. they do one week in the glen and they think they are the business. i spent more than that in a trench. try 6 months overseas and then come and tell us how hard your camp was.

Bam Bam

This is a thread about reservist/ employer relations.
Its not about your dislike of the reserve

Morpheus

angry2day wrote:

woody. your the man. none of them know anything. they are all hormone/alcohol driven wastes of money and resources. none of them ever experienced introduction to the glen, they might say they did but they really didn't. they do one week in the glen and they think they are the business. i spent more than that in a trench. try 6 months overseas and then come and tell us how hard your camp was.

By this you are implying that "1 week in the glen" is the reservist individuals decision, and because we decide to ONLY spen one week in the glen, that you're great and were not... very juvenile of you.

Its not our fault if we only GET one week in the glen, its not our fault if we only get a 3 day exercise in the field in that week, its not our fault that the vast majority of units are undertrained, its not our fault that frequently exercises etc are cancelled in favour of PDF units needing to train the same weeks but who have put in the request AFTER us.

How can you expect to field a batallion camp for longer than 1 or even 2 weeks more than once a year, with intensive training, if people cannot get time off work or have no holidays left??

Legislation is needed, and your disrespectful attitude and answer is not whats needed.

Some of us try our damndest to be the best we can be, unfortunatley there are constraints which affect the levels of training and competency some of us have that our outside our powers to control. Address these issues with some meaningful answers before you go pissing all over the RDF just because you dont like them.

woody

There is talk about the now RDF having a TA role and possible oversea's.

The legislation and setup is from what I have heard two years away.

As for the Attitude PDF have to the RDF it is understanable although there are induviudals who do not run with the crowd and have potential to be good soldiers.

woody

Also about going to the Glen, Lads do scratch like we did back in the day and it will make you think do I still want to be here, I spent a week after it still getting the smell of sheep sh1t outta my combats:eek:

nesf

Back on topic lads

Reservists in employment. Discussing what reservists actually do and the lack of legislation is a bit outside the scope of this thread. Good topic, but for a different time and place methinks.

Bam Bam

Still interested in peoples views on this subject.

Sgt Slaughter

Some sort of legislation is needed to bring the reserve up to standard. But like everything in life its a bit of give and take. This is what i would propose. Put in the legislation for training, then lets see some decent training camps for rdf, how about 1 month in the glen forming part of a PDF unit/Battle Group. Music to everyones ears that would be. Gives the RDF decent training and the PDF the added incentive of getting off their lazy arses or face the embarrasment of getting a beating from a reserve unit.

On the other side of the coin, no booze in the mess when in barracks or employ the 2 can rule like the brits do, you fúck up your arps or dont turn up, dont magically pass them, proper fitness tests, exactly the same as for pdf. You fail, no camp, no grat until you pass. Get rid of the wasters, walter mittys and alcoholics looking for cheap drink and well be left with a smaller better trained and equiped reserve worthy of the name reserve. Needs to be a purge throughout the rank and file. Course thats never going to happen unless they go ahead with the integrated element which will be what ive outlined above and the 2nd line will become a militia/drinking club effort

Bam Bam

And that has what to do with EMPLOYER RELATIONS

nesf

Bam Bam wrote:

And that has what to do with EMPLOYER RELATIONS

Um, it's a bit late to reply to it tbh....