Publications and Reports| annual report and accounts 2002-03 |
Manning Levels
Objective:
To achieve broad manning balance within each Service and recruit and retain sufficient MOD Civil Servants.
Performance Measures:
- The Royal Navy and Royal Air Force to achieve full manning, and the Army to meet 97% of its manning requirement, by March 2004.
- Reduce percentage variance from the trained requirement in key areas of shortfall, for all three Services.
- 5% of all Armed Forces recruits to be from UK ethnic minorities. Progress towards ethnic minority, gender and disability targets for the Civil Service.
- Reduce loss to trained strength due to illness and injury, including average number of days lost per civilian staff year to sickness absence.
Performance Assessment:
- Good progress has been made towards achieving manpower targets (see Figure 4). At 1 April 2003, the Royal Air Force had achieved manning balance with 98.5% of the requirement, the Royal Navy had cut its deficit to just 910 personnel (achieving 97.6% of the requirement) and the Army was on course with 95.5% of the requirement, up from 93.9% in April 2002.
- Areas of critical shortage remained, particularly in the medical specialisations. A range of initiatives, including financial incentives, is being used to target key specialisations.
- There continues to be year-on-year increase in the proportion of UK ethnic minority recruits to the Armed Forces. Provisional 2002/03 figures were 2.8% of officer and 2.4% of other ranks recruits to the Army, 2% of recruits to the Royal Navy and 2.5% to the Royal Air Force were from UK ethnic minorities. Civil Service diversity figures improved in all target grades, but fell short of the targets.
- A number of Service personnel health initiatives were launched covering better awareness of risks, and quicker and better diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. Civilian sickness absence reduced from the PSA baseline figure of 8.0 working days lost per staff year to 7.6 days.
On-going PSA targets are in italics. See Annex B for a complete table.
Summary
79. 2002/03 was the best recruiting year for the Services for a decade, and we are on course to meet our PSA manning target by March 2004 (see Figure 4). There continued, however, to be significant shortfalls in some specialist categories, including medical personnel. Operations in Iraq saw the biggest call up of Reserves since the 1950s, and demonstrated their very high quality. We have made progress towards our diversity objectives, in both the Armed Forces and the MOD Civil Service, but the trend nevertheless has been slower than required to meet most of the targets in this area. Significant work has taken place to implement the recommendations of the Medical Quinquennial Review for the Armed Forces, which should lead to a reduction in losses to trained strength. Civil Service sickness absences continued to reduce.
Service Manning Levels
80. Tables 6, 7 and 8 show the inflow to UK Regular forces (i.e. recruitment performance), the outflow from UK Regular forces (i.e. retention performance) and the overall strength of the Armed Forces. This was our best recruiting year for a decade. In 2002/03, the total intake from civil life to the Armed Forces was 26,280 personnel, 103% of the overall recruitment target (compared with 95% in 2001/02). The Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force achieved 103%, 108% and 89% respectively, although all three Services experienced recruitment shortfalls in specific areas. A total of 24,090 Service personnel (trained and untrained) left the Armed Forces in 2002/03, 500 fewer than last year.
81. At the end of 2002/03 the Royal Navy and Royal Marines had a shortfall of some 910 personnel against the trained strength requirement (a deficit of 2.4%). This is a significant improvement on the position at the beginning of the year when the deficit was 4.3%. This was achieved by a planned reduction of the manning requirement together with a strong recruiting performance and a number of retention initiatives. Manpower shortages remain a particular problem in some specialisations, however, including engineers, submarine warfare officers and in the Royal Marines.
 |
| The RAF achieved manning balance, with a deficit of just 750 personnel. |
82. As at 1 April 2003 the Army had a shortfall of 4,850 against the requirement (a deficit of 4.5%). This improvement on last year's position (where the deficit was 6.1%) was mainly due to continued buoyant recruiting figures (see Table 6). Premature Voluntary Retirement (PVR) rates for non-commissioned ranks dropped from 6.0% to 5.5%, and Officers decreased from 4.2% to 3.4%. Significant shortages remained, though, within the Royal Signals, Royal Logistics Corps, Royal Army Medical Corps, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps.
83. The manning position in the Royal Air Force improved again during 2002/03 with the overall manning deficit dropping from 1.6% to 1.5%, well within the range of the PSA target. Nevertheless, shortages in certain branches and trades, such as junior officer pilots, navigators, medical officers and some ground personnel, remained of concern. The exit rate from the Service by PVR remained fairly constant at 2.1% for officers and 4.7% for airmen. Improving retention remains a high priority for the Royal Air Force.
| Royal Navy/Royal Marines | Army | Royal Air Force | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000/01 | 2001/02 | 2002/03 | 2000/01 | 2001/02 | 2002/03 | 2000/01 | 2001/02 | 2002/03 | |
| Trained Requirement | 39,900 | 39,180 | 38,510 | 106,9702 | 106,9703 | 106,9803 | 51,590 | 49,990 | 49,640 |
| Trained Strength | 38,540 | 37,490 | 37,600 | 100,380 | 100,4204 | 102,120 | 50,110 | 49,200 | 48,900 |
| Variation | -1,360 | -1,690 | -910 | -6,600 | -6,560 | -4,850 | -1,490 | -790 | -750 |
| Untrained Strength | 4,400 | 4,860 | 4,960 | 13,580 | 14,380 | 14,880 | 3,850 | 4,120 | 4,700 |
| Total UK Regular Forces | 42,940 | 42,350 | 42,560 | 113,960 | 114,790 | 117,000 | 53,960 | 53,320 | 53,600 |
|
Note: (2) Corrected figure from last year's Departmental Performance Report. (3) Regular Army Liability Baseline (reviewed annually). (4) Revised following the discovery of a coding error in the allocation of soldiers to the trained and untrained strengths. | |||||||||
| Figure 4: Trained Strength as a Percentage of Requirement, Compared with PSA Target | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
|
|
Royal Navy/ Royal Marines 覧覧 |
Army 覧覧 |
Royal Air Force 覧覧 | |
Defence Medical Services (DMS)
84. Recruitment and retention of medical manpower within the DMS continue to pose serious challenges. As at 1 January 2003, the overall manning shortfall across the DMS was 24%. Of particular concern are shortfalls in key specialities including general surgeons, orthopaedic surgeons, and anaesthetists. Nevertheless, during the year DMS personnel deployed on Operations to Iraq, Kosovo, Bosnia, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone and Northern Ireland. At its peak, over 2,000 Regular medical personnel and over 750 medical Reservists were deployed on Operation TELIC.
85. The outcome of the Medical Manning and Retention Review (MMRR), undertaken to address the manning problem, was announced in November 2002. The new pay structure it recommended, which aimed to provide improved comparability with the NHS, was implemented in April 2003. Other recommendations of the MMRR are also being implemented. The response to the 'Golden Hello' scheme, under which a payment of ｣50,000 is made available to attract trained medical officers in critical shortage specialties, has been encouraging.
Reserves
86. Reserve forces continued to play a vital role both in overseas operations, where they consistently provided 10-15% of the total UK force, and in the defence of the UK. During 2002/03, Reservists were called-out for Operations in Iraq; in support of the campaign against international terrorism, including deployments with the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan; and on Operations in the former Yugoslavia. Smaller numbers of the Reserve Forces were also called-out to support Operations in Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of Congo. A breakdown of Reserve manpower strengths is shown in Table 9. (See paragraph 64 on the role of Reserves in supporting civil authorities in Home Security.)
87. The recent combat operations in Iraq were the biggest call-out of Reservists since the 1950s. Over 5,000 Reservists deployed to the region before the start of hostilities. They provided individuals to augment Regular units, a traditional role for Reservists, as well as providing specialist units in such areas as logistics, signals, medicine and engineering. The call-out procedures worked well and the Reserve Forces produced the necessary manpower and skills. Their contribution was essential to the success of
the Operation.
88. The Department recognises that the effectiveness of the Reserves depends on the three-way relationship between the MOD, the Reservists themselves and their employers. Our SaBRE (Supporting Britain's Reservists and Employers) campaign continued to offer advice and support to employers throughout the mobilisation process. Where possible, the Department took employers' requirements into consideration when mobilising Reservists. This will continue.
Sponsored Reserves (SRs)
89. SRs are civilian contractors who provide specialist support to the Armed Forces in peacetime, and continue to provide the same support on Operations but as mobilised members of a Reserve force. In 2002/03, the Royal Air Force made use of SRs from the Mobile Meteorological Unit to support operations, including Operation TELIC. In addition, work was begun to place a contract with SERCo Aerospace for the provision of SRs to provide engineering support for aircraft of 32 (The Royal) Squadron. Recruitment and training of the SRs for the Heavy Equipment Transporter programme progressed well and remained on schedule. In addition, the Royal Navy mobilised 64 SRs to serve on the Strategic Service Ships in support of Operation TELIC.
Civilian Manning Levels
90. The Department employed 92,124 UK-based civilian staff on 1 April 2003 (including those in Trading Funds), down from 92,985 on 1 April 2002. All recruitment (see Table 10) is based on fair and open competition and selection on merit, in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Civil Service Commissioners. Compliance with this guidance is subject to internal check and external audit by independent consultants acting on behalf of the Commissioners. A breakdown of Senior Civil Service Salaries is available on the MOD website at http://www.mod.uk.
Race Equality Scheme
91. The Department's Race Equality Scheme was published in May 2002 and confirmed the Department's on-going commitment to equality of opportunity. It recorded how the Department intends to fulfil its obligations under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, covering the Armed Forces, the MOD Civil Service and MOD Police.
92. In 2002/03 the Department began a series of activities aimed at full implementation and working towards building on existing best practice. Particular achievements and initiatives included Gold Awards under Business in the Community Race for Opportunity scheme; the work of the Multi Faith Working Group for the Armed Forces; and building relevant race-equality considerations into the procurement process.
93. More detail is contained in the Race Equality Scheme progress report on the Department's website (http://www.mod.uk).
Service Equal Opportunities/Diversity
94. Good progress was made in this area and the successful five-year partnership agreement with the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) that ended on 28 March 2003 was succeeded by a second agreement, signed by the Chief of the Defence Staff and the CRE Chair, Trevor Phillips, in July.
95. The representation of ethnic minorities in the Armed Forces continued to increase, with provisional figures at the end of March 2003 showing an average of 4.4% across the three Services. This figure includes Commonwealth nationals. There remains a need to increase the proportion of UK ethnic-minority recruits. Consequently, a specific target for the next three years is for each Service to increase the proportion of ethnic minority recruits from the UK by at least 0.5% a year. Provisional 2002/03 figures show 2.8% of officer and 2.4% of other ranks recruits to the Army, 2% of recruits to the Royal Navy and 2.5% to the Royal Air Force were from UK ethnic minorities.
96. As at 1 April 2003, women made up nearly 8.6% (17,910) of Armed Forces personnel, up from 8.3% (17,038) in April 2002. The Armed Forces recruited 3,230 women in 2002/03, an increase of 540 over the previous year and representing 12.3% of the total intake.
Civilian Equal Opportunities/Diversity
97. Progress against targets was mixed. The Department exceeded the target for women at Band B (the grade below Senior Civil Service), and further increased ethnic-minority representation, but still generally lagged behind increasingly demanding targets. The improvements that have been made reflect the success of initiatives put in place over a number of years, and the increasing representation of women at Band B and D (the entry level for most graduates) should in time contribute to a better position in the Senior Civil Service. Nevertheless, more needs to be done and a new strategic approach to diversity will be launched in the coming year with the intention of further raising awareness and generating new initiatives to increase representation of minority groups.
98. A Disability Steering Committee was set up in December 2002. It comprised representatives from most business areas, for both industrial and non-industrial personnel with disabilities. Through their work it is envisaged that the Department will become a more disability friendly and aware organisation.
99. The Department was also involved in schemes to help the development of people from ethnic minorities. For example, a pilot scheme for junior grades, New Horizons, started in September 2002 and, for those with potential for the Senior Civil Service, the Department continued to participate in the Cabinet Office Pathway development programme.
Diversity
What is diversity?
It is something of a truism to say that British society is becoming more diverse, bringing together people of different races, genders, cultures, abilities, ages, sexual orientations, family structures, lifestyles, and backgrounds. This is as true for the MOD as anywhere else, and for us includes also the different perspectives, skills and experiences of both Service personnel and Civil Servants. Diversity embodies the principle of equality of opportunity. Ethically, it reflects the view that it is right for everyone in a fair society to have the opportunity to contribute according to their ability, and to be fairly rewarded for the contribution they make - large or small - regardless of their background. And it reflects an understanding that variety of input improves our output. It therefore consciously goes beyond simply implementing our statutory equal opportunities obligations as an employer, and seeks to value, draw on and expand the full range of the different perspectives, experience and approaches available to Defence from the people we employ. And it is not simply about challenging the Department's management. It is, equally importantly, a challenge to every individual member of staff, military or civilian and at every level, to be the best they can. At the same time, our diversity policy recognises that the Armed Forces exist to conduct operations on behalf of the nation, if necessary by engaging in battle; it is that function that distinguishes us from all other employers. In order to deliver operational capability, the Armed Forces employ people who meet specific standards of health and fitness and certain nationality criteria. Certain posts are also closed to women on combat effectiveness or health and safety grounds.
Why does diversity matter?
Proper recognition and successful management of diversity has several very real benefits for Defence. From a pragmatic management perspective, an organisation with an ethos that recognises and values difference, and treats its people as individuals, is more likely to have staff who feel valued. They in return will be more creative and productive, and more likely to maximise the contribution they make to Defence. Successful diversity management will also create the conditions to attract and retain the very best people. In the round, therefore, good diversity management will enable us to make the most out of the single most important resource available to us: our own people. By so doing it will ensure that we are as flexible and astute as we can be in our responses to a rapidly changing world.
From a wider perspective, it is important that in pursuit of the general goal of national defence and international security the Services and the Department are open to, and are seen to be open to and draw on, all parts of British society, without unfair prejudice or favour. If we are to retain the British people's support over the long term for what we do and how we do it, we must be seen to reflect the society we work within and serve.
What are we doing about it?
The key challenge is to embed diversity into the way we think and act on a day-to-day basis. All the various parts of the Department, whether Service or civilian, are working to develop specialised expertise and initiatives to make diversity work. Progress is set out in paragraphs 91-98.
Service Personnel Health
100. The health of Service personnel is of great importance to the Department and the outcome of a major review of the issue, the Medical Quinquennial Review (MQR), was announced in April 2002. It recommended a much clearer focus on the delivery of the two key Defence medical outputs - deployable medical operational capability, and timely appropriate healthcare for Service personnel. This focus will be achieved through the Defence Health Programme, which aims to modernise the delivery of medical support to operational capability.
101. The MQR recommended that the Defence Medical Services (DMS) should be re-structured to focus more effectively on its key medical outputs. Such restructuring included the launching of the Defence Medical Education and Training Agency, the establishment of a Healthcare Directorate, the transfer of the Medical Supplies Agency to the Defence Logistics Organisation, and the disestablishment of the Defence Secondary Care Agency. A two-person partnership has been established at the head of the DMS, with a new Deputy Chief of Defence Staff for Health working closely with the Surgeon General. These changes will modernise the delivery of medical support to military Operations, and improve the health and healthcare of Service personnel.
102. The MQR further recommended that a stronger partnership should be established with the NHS and a 'Concordat' was signed in September 2002 between the MOD and the Department of Health. This describes a cross-cutting partnership aimed at enabling the DMS and NHS to work better together offering continuing high standards of care for all patients, both civilian and military, support to military capability, and value for money for the taxpayer. Planning and delivering these benefits is the work of an MOD/Department of Health Partnership Board, which also includes representatives from the Health Departments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
103. The Department continued to make progress to reduce the number of military personnel medically downgraded because of injury. Initiatives focused on improving data collection and analysis, better awareness of risks, and quicker and better diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. Fast-tracking schemes are being developed to accelerate access to appropriate medical care for Service personnel who are temporarily downgraded. Better information on the causes of initial downgrading will allow appropriate risk mitigation strategies to be put in place. The Defence Medical Information Capability Programme, with a planned in-service date of 2005, will provide medical personnel with more rapid access to medical information in line with developments in the NHS. Moreover, the delivery of mental health care to military patients is also being modernised in line with the NHS.
Civilian Sickness Absence
104. As at 1 April 2003, sickness absence for non-industrial civilian staff had reduced from the 1998 PSA baseline figure of 8.0 working days lost per staff year, to 7.6 days. The Department now has a revised PSA target of 7.0 days, to be reached by the end of December 2003. We estimate that we shall narrowly miss this, achieving 7.2 days. The Department's Managing Attendance initiative continues to spread best practice and new ideas in the handling of sick absence.
105. A new, more reliable and accurate methodology for the compilation of civilian sick absence statistics was devised, although work to improve further the quality of the data continues. Revised figures based on the new methodology are available for December 1999 and 2000 (8.1 days and 7.9 days respectively). At the time of going to press, figures for 1 April, the date recorded in previous Departmental Performance Reports, were not available.
ｫ Section 1: Chapter 4 |
Section 1: Chapter 6 ｻ |
Last Updated: 3 Dec 03