# 2023-134 Pay and Benefits, Cadet Instructor Cadre, Canadian Forces Temporary Duty Travel Instruction, Temporary Duty Benefits, Travel Expenses

Case summary

F&R Date: 2025-01-28

The grievor, a Cadet Instructor Cadre (CIC) Officer of the Reserve Force, contested the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) decision to deny his claim for temporary duty (TD) travel expenses after completing a 30-day Class B Reserve Service Offer in support of the Cadet Activity Program (CAP). The CAF asserted that by accepting the 30-day Class B Reserve Service Offer—even though the grievor was not officially posted—the CAP position effectively became his permanent workplace. As a result, since the location specified in his 30-day service offer fell within his normal commuting zone, he was deemed ineligible for daily commuting reimbursements. However, the grievor maintained that his permanent workplace should be the training sites associated with the cadet unit to which he was officially posted, thereby making his CAP duties a TD assignment. Under this interpretation, he argued he would be entitled to claim TD travel expenses in accordance with the Canadian Forces Temporary Duty Travel Instructions (CFTDTI). As redress, the grievor seeks reimbursement for TD travel expenses incurred during his 30-day Class B Reserve Service Offer. The initial authority did not render a decision within the regulation timeline and the grievor requested that his grievance be submitted to the Final Authority (FA).

The Committee found that when a CIC officer accepts new terms of service at a different unit, they cease to be a member of their former unit. Accordingly, the member's permanent workplace becomes the new location specified in their Reserve Service Offer. In this case, once the grievor accepted terms of service designating the CAP site as his workplace, he was no longer a member of the training sites associated with the cadet unit to which he was previously posted. Because the CAP site was designated as the grievor's new permanent workplace, the CFTDTI did not apply to his daily commute, as there is no entitlement to reimbursement for travel expenses to and from a permanent workplace. Moreover, even if the grievor were deemed on TD rather than permanently transferred, the CAP site still fell within the same geographical area as his former unit, meaning the CFTDTI would not allow reimbursement for daily travel inside the place of duty. Consequently, the Committee found the grievor is not entitled to reimbursement for travel expenses for the period in question and recommended that the FA not afford the grievor redress.