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Blanket Stacker's Rule Okay

Discussions about the Territorial Army.
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Tab
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Blanket Stacker's Rule Okay

Post by Tab »

there was this article in the Daily Telegraph explaining that the TA soldiers that go on operations with the regular army are being passed over for promotion by those that never go on operations. It seems that the ones that don't go away can sit their exams for promotion and fill the vacant jobs while those that are on active service are bypassed.

TA soldiers 'passed over for promotion' after serving in Iraq
By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent


(Filed: 25/09/2006)



Territorial Army soldiers are returning from tough operations abroad to find they have lost out on promotion to colleagues who stayed at home, troops said yesterday.

Some who spent six months in Iraq and Afghanistan are furious that their war experience is being ignored and many have quit in disgust.

The veterans are critical of TA commanders "stuck in the Cold War mind-set" of fighting a Soviet-era war rather than taking in their experience of battling insurgents.

advertisementWith TA soldiers also complaining of the poor post-combat psychological help they receive, many observers believe this has contributed to a dramatic drop in numbers: the force now stands at little more than 30,000.

Since the war on terrorism began, the TA, made up of civilians who spend every other weekend training as soldiers, has been vital to operations, providing about eight per cent of troops serving abroad.

More than 13,000 have served on Operation Telic, in Iraq, but many feel that whereas their experience of having "a good tour" would be credited with promotion in the regular Army, they are "passed over" in the TA.

"It makes for an unpleasant return to the unit and has resulted in the loss of some well-loved and experienced NCOs," said one corporal.

"One of my mates returned with an outstanding operational report — indeed the regulars very nearly kidnapped him — but his third stripe did not arrive for two years. His quick thinking and leadership on Telic counted for nothing back at his TA centre."

An NCO who had served in a front-line battalion returned to find those busy "stacking blankets while we were fighting a war" had been promoted. "In the TA's judgment it seems what we do on tours is not considered part of our careers but as an anomaly."

Many have written of their experiences on the unofficial Army Rumour Network website, with the topic having 6,000 hits in the past fortnight.

Another corporal complained that his promotion had been held up for a year while a soldier he had trained and who had not gone to Iraq was promoted to sergeant.

"Most veterans feel a little alienated because there are a lot of seniors who will not and have not done a tour. They feel uneasy around you."

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said each unit had its own promotion criteria that depended on individuals passing certain courses.

"If they have not passed the correct courses they are not acceptable to be put up for promotion."
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Post by Hantslad »

I can agree with all that. If you mobilise and deploy, you get forgotten about by your unit. If you never go anywhere and turn up for every annual camp, you get all the courses and all the promotion.
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Post by Paratrooper01 »

Get a reference from the OC you were serving under in the regular unit, send it to your TA OC explaining how well youve done etc and you deserve promotion.

Makes sense that the ones who have been in combat should have the rank. All the cowards that stay at home should be demoted.
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