Naval Service member paid €125 for 40 hours’ overtime, Dáil told

A member of the Defence Forces deployed on the Naval Service Mediterranean mission Operation Sophia was paid €125 for 40 hours’ overtime, the Dáil has heard.

During a row about the problems with pay and conditions, recruitment and retention of Defence Forces personnel Independents4Change TD Clare Daly spoke of the "crazy conditions" members had to work under.

She quoted a sailor just back from deployment with the Naval Service on Operation Sophia, the Mediterranean mission to rescue migrants.

Ms Daly said he worked “a 12-hour day at sea, seven days a week with two or three 24 hours’ duties thrown in”.

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“I do about 80 hours a week for extra €125 euro on top of my €435 a week,” she quoted, adding that was €560 for a 40-hour week plus 40 hours’ overtime.

The Dublin Fingal TD said these were the conditions that had to be addressed to prevent experienced, qualified staff from leaving the service.

Minister of State for Defence Paul Kehoe told her that as part of "normal Naval Service life, personnel serve a week or two at sea. They do not come home every evening and dock the ship," and "set off again the next morning".

But he recognised that life at sea was difficult and he wanted the Public Service Pay Commission to recognise that as well.

Commission

The commission is analysing underlying difficulties of recruitment and retention in a number of sectors including the Defence Forces. Mr Kehoe said he expected to have its recommendations shortly.

Ms Daly highlighted the revelation that in 2017 despite a major recruitment campaign there was a net gain of just three Defence Forces personnel.

She pointed to overall numbers of personnel that had dropped below 8,500 for first time, over 1,000 below the 9,500 minimum.

“We’re losing experienced, trained people who are being replaced by new recruits, who take time and money to get to the same level of experience.”

Mr Kehoe said that 751 personnel were inducted as of December 31st, 2017 and 742 exited the service, 209 of whom left before completing their initial training.

He added that over the long-run the average turnover for recruits in training was 22 per cent but in 2017 it rose to 28 per cent.

The Dublin Fingal TD said there were a number of issues around conditions “which you have control over and could address, not least the long hours”.

The Minister told her he “wanted this sorted out”.

“I want my officials to sort it out. I want Defence Forces military management to sort it out,” he said.

Frustrations

He recognised the frustrations of personnel and he hoped the pay commission would as well.

Earlier, Fianna Fáil Defence spokesman Jack Chambers claimed that the initiative to recruit officers back into the service who had left "has attracted nearly no interest".

He added that the scheme to recruit returning officers was making existing employees “livid” and speeding up their plans to retire.

Mr Chambers claimed the Government was diverting attention from its recruitment and retention difficulties with “waffle” about schemes for former officers.

Rejecting his claims, the Minister said the scheme included provision that re-entering officers are placed on a three-year contract and they “cannot compete for promotion, nor will they block a promotional opportunity for existing officers during that time”.

He added that even if it was only “one, two, three, four or five” personnel who returned it would make a difference. Mr Kehoe said military management proposed the plan on that basis.

He added, however, that primary legislation is likely to be required for former enlisted personnel to return to the service.