# 2015-297 - Promotion, Promotion of Members of the National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) / Military Personnel Command...

Case Summary

F&R Date: 2016–04–06

Upon being selected for a Class B Reserve Service in the National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ), a position administered by the Primary Reserve List (PRL), the grievor was promoted Acting While so Employed (A/WSE) to the rank of major. She argued that she should have been promoted substantive to that rank as she met all the promotion criteria and was previously ranked on the annual merit list of her environmental command. She further argued that had she been selected for a major's position within her environmental command at that time, she would have been promoted substantive.

She claimed that the PRL's promotion practices are unfair and contrary to the applicable promotion policies. When the grievor asked for clarification, her director indicated that she was not considered for a substantive promotion as she was not part of the PRL organization when the annual selection cycle was initiated. Therefore, she could not be included in the Combined Selection List (CSL) which is created to grant substantive promotions on 1 April of each year. The grievor submitted her redress, requesting that her seniority in the rank of major be backdated to the date she started her Class B Reserve service in NDHQ.

The initial authority denied the grievor's request for redress indicating that the grievor could not meet all prerequisites for promotion established for reservists employed in NDHQ, as she was not included in the CSL of that year.

The Committee found that the overall timeline used to generate the CSL, including the establishment of a promotion date of 1 April, is not required by policy and lacks flexibility. The Committee noted that, when firmly applied, the current scheme can sometimes achieve undesirable results; deserving reservists may have to wait a complete year before being considered for a substantive promotion given that there is no mechanism to consider a reservist's promotion once the CSL has been established.

The Committee found that the grievor was selected for a three-year Class B Reserve service employment opportunity, met all the promotion criteria, and was supported by her environmental command for a substantive promotion. Given the intent expressed in the relevant policies, the Committee concluded that the grievor should have been considered and granted a substantive promotion.

The Committee recommended that the grievor's substantive promotion to the rank of major and seniority in that rank be amended retroactively to the date she started her Class B Reserve service in NDHQ.

The Committee addressed the NDHQ PRL's promotion policy and practice through a systemic recommendation.

CDS Decision Summary

CDS Decision Date: 2016–06–09

The FA agreed with the Committee's findings and recommendation that the grievance be upheld. The FA agreed that the failure to take the grievor's file into consideration was simply because she was still a member of the Air Reserve when the Combined Selection List was initiated; it has unnecessarily contributed to the grievor's delayed promotion. The FA added that the inflexibility associated with the creation of the Combined Select List has created a situation of unfairness especially for those personnel switching from an environmental PRL to the NDHQ/MILPERSCOM PRL. The FA directed that the grievor be retroactively promoted to the substantive rank of major.