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NZDF Personnel Strength
As at 1 July 2008, the personnel strength of the NZDF for regular force, civil staff and non-regular force members were 9,278, 2,414 and 2,197 respectively. The tables below give a breakdown by Service and rank.
Regular Force Personnel Strength by Rank as at 1 July 2008
| RANK |
NAVY |
ARMY |
AIR FORCE |
TOTAL |
| LIEUTENANT GENERAL(E) |
- |
1 |
- |
1 |
| MAJOR GENERAL (E) |
2 |
2 |
1 |
5 |
| BRIGADIER (E) |
4 |
7 |
7 |
18 |
| COLONEL (E) |
17 |
27 |
20 |
64 |
| LIEUTENANT COLONEL (E) |
67 |
88 |
68 |
223 |
| MAJOR (E) |
140 |
251 |
187 |
578 |
| CAPTAIN (E) |
121 |
186 |
192 |
499 |
| LIEUTENANT (E) |
65 |
117 |
77 |
259 |
| 2ND LIEUTENANT (E) |
29 |
60 |
55 |
144 |
| OFFICER CADET (E) |
33 |
66 |
6 |
105 |
| OFFICER TOTAL (E) |
478 |
805 |
613 |
1,896 |
| WARRANT OFFICER (E) |
110 |
282 |
141 |
533 |
| STAFF SERGEANT (E) |
206 |
359 |
233 |
798 |
| SERGEANT (E) |
174 |
383 |
405 |
962 |
| CORPORAL (E) |
267 |
465 |
360 |
1,092 |
| LANCE CORPORAL (E) |
- |
621 |
- |
621 |
| PRIVATE (E) |
785 |
1,839 |
752 |
3,376 |
| OTHER RANKS TOTAL |
1,542 |
3,949 |
1,891 |
7,382 |
| TOTAL |
2,020 |
4,754 |
2,504 |
9,278 |
Civil Staff (1) as at 1 July 2008
| HEADQUARTERS NZDF(2) |
940 |
| NAVY |
391 |
| ARMY |
689 |
| AIR FORCE |
394 |
| TOTAL |
2,414 |
Notes:
(1) Full-time equivalents
(2) HQ NZDF total includes HQJFNZ, Defence Technology Agency staff, staff employed in Veterans’ Affairs NZ
Non-Regular Force Personnel as at 1 July 2008
| NAVY |
315 |
| ARMY |
1,690 |
| AIR FORCE |
192 |
| TOTAL |
2,197 |
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Engagements
Until mid-1998, Armed Forces personnel were enlisted on a standard 20-year engagement. Under this engagement structure, personnel were able to give notice at any time and could generally leave after giving three months’ notice, unless subject to a return of service commitment in return for training provided by the NZDF. When introduced in 1976, this flexible engagement structure was seen as a positive move away from binding contracts that existed prior to that time. However, for a variety of reasons including the shorter career horizons of today’s recruits, and the lack of adequate incentives for continued service in the crucial first 12 years of service, attrition rates have been increasing over time.
The enhanced engagement structure introduced in mid-1998 now offers prospective recruits initial engagement lengths ranging between six to fifteen years, with differing lengths according to trade and the desired return on investment from the training provided for personnel. Subsequent engagements may be offered to personnel subject to continuing satisfactory performance on the part of the individual, and the needs of the NZDF in meeting its outputs. Incentives have been structured around the engagement structure to encourage personnel to continue serving, with a greater focus on the first twelve to fifteen years of service.
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From Equity to Diversity
The baton to champion Equity and the integration of women at all levels and trades into the Services has been passed between successive Chiefs of Defence Force for many years. Chiefs of Defence Force have shown leadership, commitment and the courage to be publicly accountable for equity and in particular gender integration. Further, all Chiefs of Defence Force have been prepared to be ahead of the legislators regarding the employment of women in combat roles, a situation that continues today.
The integration of women into the Services began in 1977 and was a huge culture change for the NZDF. This initiative began a journey that continues to the present. Integration was as much about pay and opportunities as addressing inequities. The fundamental issue that needed to be addressed was the pervasiveness of masculinity in the military culture and the pressures put on women to conform to a masculine set of values and standards.
The process of gender integration has been a string of phased initiatives all demonstrating the commitment of successive Chiefs of Defence Force and pioneering Service women prepared to make a difference.
“To be the best Defence Force in everything we do”, the NZDF needs a workforce clear in its direction, working smarter as a fully integrated force. The new Diversity Strategy “Valuing Diversity: Leadership in Action” is an integral part in providing this clear direction. The strategy signals a move to a more sophisticated understanding of equity in the organisation focusing on diversity as a vehicle for further change.
The intent of the Diversity Strategy is to continue to build on the sound progress already made. We will be seeking to further enhance our organisational strength and operational effectiveness by embracing diversity in the coming years. The Diversity Strategy is an integral part of the journey towards changes in work practices and doing things differently to be more operationally effective.
The Strategy signals a clear move to a more sophisticated understanding of equity in the organisation. The emphasis of this ‘move forward’ is to focus on diversity as a vehicle for further change. The objective of the Strategy is to optimise performance through strengthening of NZDF’s inclusive culture, recognising that this strength is partly derived from the differences that each individual brings to the organisational team.
Valuing and leveraging diversity is an integral part of competent leadership. NZDF requires competent leadership at all levels that embodies different perspectives and approaches that draw upon different backgrounds and truly values a variety of opinion and insight. For this reason the Diversity Strategy is subtitled “Leadership in Action”.
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Parental Leave
The NZDF has enhanced the statutory entitlements under the Parental Leave and Protection Act in an attempt to retain the experience and skills of those Service members who take a period of Parental Leave. These enhancements include: payment of a Parental Returning Incentive, which is six weeks salary which is paid six months after return to work; entitlement to 10 days’ ‘Special Leave’ on pay for both the pregnant Service member and her partner prior to the birth of the child for reasons connected with the pregnancy; reduction of the requirement to serve 52 weeks between subsequent periods of Parental Leave to 26 weeks on a case by case basis; and payment of Employment Conditions Abroad allowances if on Parental Leave while serving overseas.
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Return of Service Obligation Policy (ROSO)
The authority to impose a ROSO is provided in the Defence Act, 1990. Personnel subject to a ROSO have a statutory obligation to complete a prescribed period of service in fulfilment of that obligation. A ROSO is applied to protect NZDF’s investment in the skills and knowledge of its personnel and to facilitate the retention of trained Service members to maintain operational capability. The NZDF is currently investigating whether bonds may be a useful supplement to ROSOs for non-critical courses that are not of high cost.
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Education and Qualifications
The three Services are all independently registered with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority as Government Training Establishments, and a number of the NZDF training establishments are accredited to deliver and assess against unit standards on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). Where possible, NZDF personnel can gain external recognition for training where the NZDF training encompasses unit standards or qualifications on the NQF. NZDF personnel are also actively involved with Industry Training Organisations assisting with writing unit standards and the development of national qualifications.
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Complaints Procedure
Section 49 of the Defence Act 1990 allows Service personnel to make a complaint if they consider they have been wronged in any manner. The channel for complaints in the NZDF is the command chain. If Service personnel are unable to obtain redress through their respective Service, complaints can be forwarded to the Chief of Defence Force, who is the final authority for redress. Complaints made to the CDF are referred to the Judge Advocate General (JAG), who investigates complaints and makes recommendations to the CDF. The CDF makes the final decision on a complaint, and that decision is conveyed in writing through the command chain to the complainant.
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Awards and Medals
Medals are a traditional way of recognising service in the armed forces. Medals are awarded to recognise acts of gallantry, participation in campaigns, and to reward long service. In addition, members of the armed forces are eligible to be appointed as Additional Companions, Officers or Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit for operational service. Extensive information on the medals and honours awarded to New Zealand military personnel can be found in the Medals section of the NZDF website.
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New Zealand Cadet Forces
The New Zealand Cadet Forces (NZCF) are established under section 74 of the Defence Act 1990, and comprise the Sea Cadet Corps, the New Zealand Cadet Corps and the Air Training Corps. The individual units are local community youth groups which, although not part of the New Zealand Defence Force, operate under the direction of, and gain support from, the Chief of Defence Force in partnership with the New Zealand Returned Services Association, the Sea Cadet Association of New Zealand, the Cadet Corps Association of New Zealand and the Air Training Corps Association of New Zealand.
The NZDF principally provides the rules of operation of units, the conditions of membership, the national training programmes and some resources of a military type or style, not normally available within local community resources support, and which reinforce the cadet/NZDF links. The Cadet Forces budget funded from Headquarters, NZDF amounts to approximately $1,900,000 and, additionally, single Services directly fund resources of approximately $200,000 each for the programmed training camps and courses.
There are currently 106 cadet units (18 Sea Cadet, 37 New Zealand Cadet Corps and 51 Air Training Corps), with a strength of 249 officers and 3,446 enrolled cadets. In addition to these units, there are approximately 6 other locally organised youth groups which are in various stages of formation towards desired membership as NZCF units.
Although the principal role of the Cadet Forces is that of a youth organisation, the rank structure, disciplined approach and training methodology is based on NZDF military principles. The training programme is designed to provide officers and cadets with leadership, teamwork and self-discipline skills in order to undertake adventurous activities safely, to develop an ethic of community service and to understand the functions and roles of the Armed Forces.
Being outside the New Zealand Defence Force, the Cadet Force units are independent of the normal Service chains of command, and the members of Cadet Forces are not subject to normal military discipline.
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Limited Service Volunteer Training
Limited Service Volunteer (LSV) training, comprising a six-week course aimed primarily at long-term unemployed young people between the ages of 18 and 25, commenced in May 1993. Training is provided at Burnham and since 1 July 1998 the LSV Training Unit has been staffed on a tri-Service basis. Funding of the scheme is subsidised by an annual grant from the Ministry of Social Development.
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Assistance to the Unemployed and Disadvantaged Youth
In addition to the Limited Service Volunteer Scheme, a number of initiatives have been developed to meet the NZDF’s role in assisting disadvantaged youth and the unemployed. These include:
- the Room to Move Project - this is a six-week work experience programme operating at Trentham Camp;
- the appointment of Service personnel to be Team Leaders for the 12-week youth development programmes operated by the Prince’s Trust, formerly known as the Prince of Wales Trust, in Porirua, Whangarei, Auckland, Dunedin and Christchurch;
- assisting Raleigh International New Zealand in assessing and selecting participants for their leadership programmes; and
- the Youth Life Skills (YLS) cell based at Burnham Camp now provides advice and staff support for a number of institutions managing and running basic life skills courses. These include military academies established in a number of secondary schools and colleges.
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