One Army?

[msr]

I'm beginning to start believing it:

In fact, feck it, I'm going to have an uncharacteristic rant.

For the love of Christmas, can someone please cut down on the amount of administrative work we seem to have to do on a daily basis?

I've just finished my 3 year SSC, and I'm not staying. It's the nugatory, pointless work that's slowly sapping the life out of the job.

For Junior Officers, life is busier that that it ever was. If I'm not preparing to go to either Iraq or Afghan, I'm trying to cram in training for the guys, JOTES, MK1 (an entirely separate rant), JOTAC, trying to unravel the complex and bewildering JPA system so soldiers can actually be administered correctly (I though we had clerks for that?!) , CR's, pointless equipment care inspections on kit so old it's now unsupported by the manufacturer, so it fails.... it goes on.

Last week, I had to write a RASP for a range that the Squadron had used the week before. Same range, no change. But the system demands a completely new RASP. Every time. Why can't there be Standing RASPs/EASPS for each sub-Unit activity, with users only required to submit nominal rolls if there's no change to the activity taking place? What is the point of repeating yourself ad nauseam, every time?

The Unit was also visited by a Senior Officer last week. Nice enough fellow, but seemed utterly unaware of life on the ground. "Chaps....." he harrumphed. "What you young officers need to do is, if the blokes are down, grab them and go up into the hills this weekend for a spot of bonding and hillwalking...."

Granted, when he was a YO in 1969, you could probably do that. But firstly, if I take Cpl Smith away from his wife again, she'll probably leave him. By the time I've found a qualified JSMEL, completed a Risk Assessment, gained clearance from the Brigade to actually leave the camp gates, argued with the contractor about what nugatory paperwork I should fill out for a "pay as you die" packed lunch, wrangled a minibus from a Whole Fleet Manager, found someone under the age of 31 with a D license to actually drive, it's time to start repacking kit and heading back to a Sandy Place. I can, if I wish, order the Troop out on exercise and thrash them over the hills all day in green kit, but put on a pair of Rohan walking trousers and I suddenly need to destroy a forest of paperwork to do something which is meant to be easier and more fun?! How does that work?

The thing that really, really annoys me is that we are all old enough to remember a time before this when life was easier. You could do things without fear of being sued. You could get vehicles for training because they were in your garages, not centrally stored in the middle of nowhere. You could get your men administered by a trained military clerk, not some student on the phone at JPAC who earns £5 and hour and cares even less. I could ensure my soldiers were well fed by the Master Chef, not fekking Sodexho, who would rather see blokes starve than see profits fall. And there always used to be enough play in the system so if you needed something doing, a crate to the right person, and it would all be ok. Not any more. We're being held hostage by civilian companies and I'm fed up with fat, un-cooperative men in Sodexho jumpers, smoking rolls ups, telling me I can't train my soldiers because of some bullshit contract.

And yet, this isn't a mythical time many decades ago. Oh no, this was as little as 4 years ago. In the name of savings, and budgets, we've sold out on what makes us work as an Army. Yes, we're replicating civilian best practice, but we're not civvies. We're soldiers, and until the budget managers realize that, you're going to lose a lot more blokes. And girls.

And relax............. In a nutshell, less paperwork and contractors, please.

Thread here: http://www.arrse.co.uk/cpgn2/index.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=97475#1976087

msr

 

[Fugly]

Spot on.

But, with the current bunch of turds in charge, nothing will change.

I've nearly given up, it's just so hard to achieve nowadays what used to be so simple a few years ago. Cheers, Labour, you bunch of cunts.

 

[msr]

It's not only the politicians who are to blame...

msr

 

[Fugly]

Agreed.

It's now got to the point where as soon as something potentially enjoyable pops up on the calendar, I no longer start to look forward to it but begin to feel depressed about the sheer amount of pointless admin tasks that need to take place in order to achieve it - 99% of which is just pandering to civvie contractors.

 

[MrTracey]

Agreed.

It's now got to the point where as soon as something potentially enjoyable pops up on the calendar, I no longer start to look forward to it but begin to feel depressed about the sheer amount of pointless admin tasks that need to take place in order to achieve it - 99% of which is just pandering to civvie contractors.

But you see, that is the point of the TA - perhaps our hour has come! We ARE the contractors, but we don't have a contract (yet!).

TA - two lives are better than one, with only half the responsibility and twice the fun.

 

[canteen_cowboy]

Look just face it, if you were a civil serpent working for MOD you would just do your office job, then, when you get fed up with it, sue them for some sort of RSI and get your early retirement money. they do it all without fuss or in depth pre planning,minimum risk assessemts which are basically all written down in most HSE documents. but still seem to get life changing injuries.

As it is, you have to do the paperwork so they can hire more civvies to check over your paperwork and have "think tanks" to go over the results, which will in turn lead to better kit, better trained troops.

ok i was taking the piss with the last sentence.

governments just like having troops to make themselves look good to the rest of the world, they do not actually care about you lot that are still serving in any capacity IMHO.

 

[Wingletang]

MrT - I like it!

 

[DjDangle]

As a new recruit, this doesn't fill me with positive feelings lol

 

[Bikini_Black]

I agree about SodExHo.

Those kunts are everywhere.

I was almost beside myself with mirth the other weekend when, on appearing at the scoff-house at 5am sharp (as per Bn orders), looking forward to a full english before my 12 hour shift in comcen, the fat, drunk liverpudlian mong, masquerading as "chef" curtly informed me that breakfast was not to be served until 0630!

How the feck he got that wrong is anyones guess, but i reckon it had a lot to do with him and his staff all having had no sleep due to having been on the pish for the previous 18 hours. stinking fat drunk obnoxious bastage.

These are also the people that cook for children in schools, and for sick people in hospitals, and they all couldnt give a flying feck.

This wouldn't happen if they were army, which they should be!

sodhexo = DO NOT WANT.

Back to the issue, the world is no longer run by men, or captains of industry, soldiers, and outstanding leaders, instead its run by spotty little wnakers called ACCOUNTANTS, from basingstoke.

 

[msr]

Sodexho run the catering at Co-operative Insurance and it is fantastic.

You can't blame the company if the MOD doesn't fun them correctly.

msr

 

[Hartman]

Back to the issue, the world is no longer run by men, or captains of industry, soldiers, and outstanding leaders, instead its run by spotty little wnakers called ACCOUNTANTS, from basingstoke.

Accountants will only find ways to cut costs if their boses tell them to.

The world is not run by accountants, but by people who either have less and less funding year upon year; or by company owners who want to (or have to) squeeze more profits out of slimmer margins.

The captains of industry and outstanding leaders you mention have always had accountants, lawyers, salesmen and so forth, working for them.

We as consumers have brought this on ourselves - we want cheaper goods, we buy from the internet and often from abroad. UK companies have to be competitive or face going out of business and so accountants are tasked with trimming costs and sales people are tasked with making more sales. But we as customers only hear about and feel the effects of costs being cut in the service we receive or the quality of the goods we buy.

On the defence side the govt is asking our armed services to do more with less money so, once again, accountants are told to cut costs. I presume at the other end our leaders are also asking for more money from the govt but that's not forthcoming. We as soldiers only feel the cost-cutting measures.

So don't blame the accoutants.