# 2012-125 Careers, Component Transfer (CT), Transfer from Regular Force to Reserve Force

Case Summary

F&R Date: 2013–01–30

Planning a transfer to the Reserve Force after 20 years of service in the Regular Force, the grievor met with the chain of command of a reserve unit and his application was accepted. Since the transfer called for a change of element and military occupation, the Brigade Personnel Selection Officer assessed the file and determined that the grievor met the criteria, indicating that the grievor would have to complete a few weeks of training over the coming year to qualify in his new trade and that he would retain his rank. At the time of his release from the Regular Force, the grievor asked to be transferred to the Primary Reserve. However, he was posted to the Supplementary Reserve instead with the assurance that this would have no impact on his qualifications. After two periods of reserve service, he sought a transfer to the Primary Reserve in order to continue his service in the unit. At that time, he was advised by the administrative personnel that he would not be able to retain either his rank or his Incentive Pay Category when transferring from the Supplementary Reserve to the Primary Reserve because he lacked the Common Army Phase qualification. At that point, he submitted a request for a prior learning assessment and recognition in order to be exempted from this training owing to his prior experience in the Regular Force. His request was denied. The grievor accordingly accepted an offer of service at a lower rank and Incentive Pay Category. The grievor is contesting his demotion and the refusal to credit him with the Common Army Phase. He maintains that his rank should be protected and that his military experience has been undervalued.

The Inititial Authority (IA) denied the grievance, stating that the offer of service at the rank of Lieutenant was made in consideration of the grievor’s prior service, his military experience and his brief period of inactivity in the Supplementary Reserve. As for the findings of the prior learning assessment and recognition, the IA upheld the decision not to grant the grievor an equivalency. Indicating that such an equivalency may be granted when there are similarities amounting to at least 60% between the content of the desired qualification and the qualification that the member deems equivalent, the IA concluded that the grievor’s training and experience failed to meet this standard.

The Board began by reviewing the provisions of Section 5 of Canadian Forces Military Personnel Instruction 03/08 – Canadian Forces Component Transfer and Component Transfer Career Programs (CF Mil Pers Instr 03/08), which provides that a member who is transferred directly from the Regular Force to the Primary Reserve enjoys rank protection. However, such protection is not available to members who are transferred from the Supplementary Reserve to the Primary Reserve. In order to enjoy rank protection, the grievor was required to obtain a position in the reserve unit and then meet with the Personnel Selection Officer, since he had to undergo reclassification. He then had to submit his request in writing to the Release Section within 30 days. The release authority was required to confirm the position number with the reserve unit. Finally, the reserve unit had to obtain approval from Headquarters and the member had to be transferred directly to his new position. The Board noted that the grievor had in fact completed this process. The Board communicated with the various officials involved in the transfer, and the reasons behind the grievor’s transfer to the Supplementary Reserve rather than directly to the Primary Reserve remained obscure. In the absence of any rationale and in light of the evidence on file, the Board determined that the Canadian Forces had made an error in tranferring the grievor to the Supplementary Reserve and that this error had unfairly led to the loss of his rank protection provided for by CF Mil Pers Instr 03/08.

As concerns the prior learning assessment and recognition, the Board began by noting that this was a separate issue from that of the protection of the grievor’s rank. The HQ personnel in question confirmed that if the grievor had been transferred directly from the Regular Force to the Primary Reserve his rank would have been protected whether or not he had to retake his basic training. Returning to the directive according to which 60% of similarities between a member’s training and experience must be recognized for him/her to benefit from an equivalency, the Board went over the qualification sought by the grievor point by point. The Board determined that the grievor had shown that he possessed over 60% of the skills required.

The Board recommended that the Chief of the Defence Staff uphold the grievance. The Board recommended that the grievor’s rank upon his release from the Regular Force be reinstated retroactively and that the pay he had received since he was posted to the Reserve Force be adjusted accordingly. The Board recommended that the grievor be credited with the desired qualification and that he complete his training to become qualified in his new military occupation within the one-year timeframe specified by policy.

CDS Decision Summary

CDS Decision Date: 2013–11–29

The FA agreed with the findings and recommendations of the Board. The FA tasked the Chief of Military Personnel to retroactively transfer the grievor from the Reg F to the Res F as of the date of his original request and to ensure that the necessary steps are taken to grant the grievor the substantive rank of Capt as of that date, with the consequent adjustments to his pay.