ARmy Rumour SErvice

Could it be something to do with the fact that it created lots of Officer posts? Maybe I am being too cynical.
I know there were problems before, because no system is perfect, but I think it was better before. Anyone agree? At least with Regimental Clerks, you had continuity and probably a bit more loyalty to individual units, also as the clerk grew up and was promoted, the better he knew his customers. You never seemed to have gaps in establishments either. If the Clerk was away, for more than a day, it was the one post that the OC and SSM found from somewhere, and to be fair to SPS they do not have that luxury. Dont think they were any less professional training wise, if you take into account that the Army has changed developmentally wise, allegedly, since the demise of Regt'l Clerks. Also believe that RAPC were generally better with pay matters or maybe they seemed that way because in them days we all had our own MROs/RPCs, and less reliance on computers. But at least RAPC only had to specialise in one area and never moved from Pay to Admin etc. The other good thing was I guess, at least you knew if you spoke to a Conductor, you were either booking a quartet for the mess, or a very senior Clerk; nowadays you could be booking a late meal or ordering ammo for the ranges as well!!

Who in their right mind could disagree with you? *The AGC(SPS) are having a personality disorder and have been since their birth. *Keep staff clerks to staff clerk work and pay clerks to pay. *The Corps over the last 10 years have failed to decide whether there should be two trades (staff clerk & pay) or one until recently and, of course, they make the wrong choice and decide their should be only one. *Hey wake up and smell the coffee AGC - we are diiferent and it does effect the service we provide by pretending otherwise!!!!!

Funny - the old Pay Corps, god bless em' allways claimed all arms clerks were joining them, and now, with the new AGC Career Policy letter it clearly states that under the JE review, the Pay WO scored poorly and is to be reduced to SSgt, whereby the RAOWO (Chief Clerk) is to remain WO2 (under the old pre-93 system it was SSgt/WO2), and the old ORS (Sgt) job is to move up a rank to SSgt!

Funny how things go round and round.

Heavy stuff!

Do you think the Corps will collapse in 5 years? *If so, why.

I don't agree with clerical support being better at Bn level, as in the old days, the Regt Clerks were from the Bn/Regt and knew it, the soldiers and the system in-side out (corporate knowledge), also I spoke in confidence with an ex CO who dispaired at his AGC Det as he could not use them on exercise (ie, they had no skills to offer). *In the old days, your clerks (in my Regt) had to do all courses PLUS the clerical training, so that gave them both higher pay rates and a field role.

One good thing though about the AGC is that you are not stuck with the same unit all your life!

Please excuse me but as an ex pay corps bloke and now a Staff/docs/pay/ any other admin task type person I think I should indulge myself and tick like a good un for a wee while. >:(

The Corps is going down the toilet because,as was said earlier no-one above the SO1 rank gives a damn about their lads. BUT does that make it different from any other *Regiment or Corps ? ???

What makes it different, in the shortest possible sentence or statement is as follows :

Do the Cav put their gunners in a Chally 2 driver seat and expect him to perform? NO
Do the Infantry tell a recce bloke to take charge of mortars platoon without the neccessary training? NO
Do the RLC tell their posties to work in the cookhouse? NO (well not yet anyway!!!).(This is not a dig at Chefs by the way. You deserve the higher rate of pay for all the craop yopu have to put up with).
Does the AGC put a Sgt pay bloke into a Staff support assistant job without any real training. YEAH. * * * * * How about a Lcpl who has only worked as a staff clerk into a post with an inf coy on an op tour ? YEAH

The list is endless.

The planners of MY Corps made a bit of a mistake a while back. But the long in the tooth JNCO and the Seniors are trying to keep it afloat, and thats where you lot, the customer come in... give us a wee bit of a break at the coalface, I know its hard when yer pays screwed up, and Unicoms telling you that you have no leave left. But honestly we do try sometimes. Especially when WE are also open to the same pay/leave/bad man- management that you are.

Cheers for the whinge *

Oh my God!

After reading the above it seems that the RMP is in complete and utter meltdown. *Why? *Because over the last 2 years at least 40 RMP of varying ranks have transferred over to SPS in the hope of a better life. *It seems all is not that good in the Ord Room either.

However the RMP is still flooded every year with soldiers attempting to flee their cap badge and join us. *STOP and think! *Personally I think the Army is getting a fair days work out of people these days, after many years of 20 hr weeks and sport, sport, sport, early knock offs and all the other perks we had. *We are all wingeing about working for a living.

To use the lay terms: *Normal clerking in the Ord Room is similar to Pay clerking, it involves the close scrutiny of documentation and serving a customer base. *If it saves money having a multi roled person instead of 2, obviously the Civilian penny pinchers in London will shaft us squaddies, because when you jack it, some sad civvy kid is queueing to attend Worthy Down and be a combat clefk just like the posters. *

Like any huge company, the Army treats its workforce poorly. *But then again I am in the Pension trap, 15 done 7 to go. *I may even accept a LE Commission in SPS as a Det Comd, well the pension is better isnt it.

I have to admit to being an ex staff clerk and the AGC (SPS) is the biggest bag of c**p that has ever existed. *Bring back the days of the Regimental Clerks (who knew exactly what the Regiment was about), The Pay Corps who were the experts in their field and the Staff Clerks of the old RAOC who were clerks to the Staff Headquarters. *I know a lot of people now a days will call me a dinosaur but I am not the only one who thinks like this. *When the Corps formed we were all told that streamlining would exist, but I would be surprised to find many ex staff clerks who haven't been shafted by the system. *The AGC (SPS) is run by an old core of Pay Corps personnel who think that the way ahead is pay, pay, pay. *Who else thinks the same?

No matter which way you cut it, without the attached arms - AGC (SPS) in this instance who would you have to slag off in the NAAFI Bar at nights, vent your anger at over the counter, blaim the class 3 clerk, straight out of training for your own bad admin.

The problem ladies and gents is not with the person behind the counter with maybe a vast welath of knowledge and experience or very little, but with the system itself, in this case I refer to APC/RHQ Worthy Down.

For these are the people who lease the torrent of highly educated, but no common sense wealding, imbreds directly ouit of training into the full flow of Army Adminmistration. *Do they assess these individuals fairly, look at the bigger picture as to what harm they are doing for the name of the AGC(SPS), ,

Instead of making a positive impact on the individual and sending them to a larger unit with hopefully a full establishment of SPS Staff (yet another hot issue for many) to learn, be guided and improve, the fools at the top ???? send them out to Div, Bde, Back water HQ's to make the brews, photocoy enless reams of doctrine and policy, learn the square root of shag s**t of then after 3 years of swaning around like they own the place they are finally let losse of the real Army to yours, mine and many others horror and dissapointment. *APC/Worthy Down and smell the Coffee. *

I know, and realise that the answers and overall picture in this matter is larger than I care to go into right now.

Yes the new clerks are supposed to be trained in-house by those in direct command etc, but live does not work like that. *Show me a unit where an RAO/RAOWO can afford to have someone teach, audit and wipe the a***e of a newly qualified clerk and I will show you ten who can't.

Well, that's my piece said, over to you.