# 2019-262 Careers, Acting While So Employed

Case summary

F&R Date: 2020-08-12

The grievor, a Reserve Force (Res F) member, grieved the decision to employ him under-ranked in a position established at the higher rank rather than promote him to Acting While So Employed (AWSE). As redress, he requested that he promoted AWSE for the period in which he occupied the higher-ranked position.

The Initial Authority denied redress on the grounds that the grievor did not meet the eligibility requirements for AWSE promotion provided in Canadian Forces General Message 00/60, Acting Pay/Rank, which was in effect at the time.

The Committee determined that the grievor's circumstances met the three criteria for AWSE applied consistently by the Final Authority in past grievances: he was employed in a position established at a higher rank; he performed the full spectrum of duties and responsibilities of the higher-ranked position; and he was employed in the higher-ranked position for more than 90 days.

The Committee also noted with concern how internal discussions documented in the grievance file indicated a long-standing and systemic problem of certain members not having their AWSE promotions considered correctly in the organization in question. It found that these lapses warranted a comprehensive review in order to determine if other AWSE promotions had been unfairly denied.

The Committee recommended that the Final Authority (FA) grant the grievor an AWSE promotion for the 34 months in which he occupied a position established at the higher rank. The Committee also recommended that the FA direct a review of the organization's compliance with AWSE policy in respect of Res F members.

FA decision summary

The Final Authority (FA), the Acting Commander Canadian Army, agreed with the Committee's findings and recommendation to grant redress. Because the grievor had fulfilled all the duties and responsibilities of a higher rank for more than 90 days and performed his work in the manner expected of a warrant officer, the FA exercised its authority, under article 11.02 of the Queen's Regulations and Orders for the Canadian Forces, to waive one of the promotion requirements and promote the grievor retroactively for the period in question. To avoid further problems of this kind, the FA recommended that the Military Personnel Command review section 4.7 (Under-Ranked in a Position) of the Canadian Forces Military Personnel Instruction 20/04 in order to amend the policy to bring it more into line with current promotion policies and the directives of the Chief of Defence Staff still in force regarding AWSE promotions.