TFESC Employer Of The Year Awards

Hon Heather Roy speech to the 2010 Territorial Force Employer Support Council (TFESC) Employer of the Year Awards; Grand Hall, Parliament; Tuesday, April 13 2010.

Chairman of the Territorial Forces Employer Support Council John Allen; Secretary of Defence John McKinnon; Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Tony Parr; Chief of Air Force Air Vice Marshal Graeme Lintott; Director General Reserves and Cadets Brigadier Sean Trengrove.

Territorial Forces Employer Support Council Members; Ministerial and Parliamentary colleagues; Diplomatic representatives; Reserve Force employers from throughout New Zealand; members of the New Zealand Defence Force; ladies and gentlemen.

Welcome to you all this evening for the 2010 Territorial Forces Employer Support Council Awards. It is a particular pleasure to welcome Mr Jack Smorgon, Chair of the Australian Defence Reserve Support Council and Brigadier Bill Sowry, Deputy Head of the Australian Defence Force Cadet, Reserves and Employer Support Division. Both are in New Zealand to share their knowledge and experience with the TFESC on the effect of the Australian Defence White Paper on their Reserves. Without wishing to appear partisan, I wish to point out that Brigadier Bill is also a sapper.

Between 1999 and 2002, 378 Territorial Force soldiers deployed with the UN to East Timor. Their service was part of the largest deployment by the New Zealand Army since the Korean War and the Territorial Force had not had an opportunity to deploy on this scale since 1942.

When surveyed on their return to New Zealand, 51 percent of those Territorials who deployed stated that they felt their employers were supportive of their choice but, despite this, 35 percent reported that they had to resign their civilian job in order to deploy.

A detailed report on the deployment of Territorial Soldiers in East Timor discussed in some detail the problems Territorial Force soldiers faced in dealing with their employers when trying to secure leave to deploy and noted that securing leave to attend training courses and exercises had been a problem for Territorial Force soldiers for many years.

It is significant then tonight that we are here, in Parliament's Grand Hall, to mark the third annual Territorial Force Employer Support Council Employer Awards. We have come a long way in a relatively short time to address the issues brought into focus by the Timor deployment and to work toward building a meaningful relationship between reservists and employers.

The Territorial Force Employer Support Council was formed specifically to foster and build this relationship. The Council works with employers to inform them not only of the demands of military service but also about the substantial benefits that service delivers to individuals and in turn to their employers.

The employer relationship is, however, a two-way street. Recently the Chair of one of our Regional Employer Support Committees and the Director General of Reserve Forces adjudicated in a dispute between a reservist who wanted several months leave and an employer who had made a significant investment in providing specialist training to that individual and could not afford to let him go during a busy time for the business.

Once they had heard from both parties, the adjudicators supported the employer in this dispute. The commercial reality was that his reservist staff member would have significantly disadvantaged the employer if he had taken a lengthy period of leave.

As this case demonstrates, the Council is a body that not only understand the demands military service can place on an employer, and the rewards it can deliver, but also understands the realities of business and appreciates commercial imperatives that can preclude reserve service, for the good of the employer.

The East Timor deployment was just the start for New Zealand Defence Force reservists deploying operationally. East Timor proved that reservists of all three services were ready, willing and, most of all, able and as a result have taken a much more active role in operational deployments since 2002.

Where once very few members of the services had any experience of an operational deployment, it is now very common to see junior service personnel wearing ribbons signifying awards for operational service.

Reservists bring a very special dimension to any deployment. As an example, while on patrol in Timor Leste in 2008, a visiting TF Officer found that amongst the riflemen were two reservists. The first was a structural engineer who had taken six months leave from his highly specialised, Christchurch consulting job to serve in Timor and the second was a Marlborough wine maker with a PhD in viticulture who had also taken six months out to serve his country.

Both men, when asked why they had taken leave from their successful lives, gave the same answer - that the experience of service, of camaraderie and of helping a fledgling nation could not be bought, or more importantly, equalled by anything they could find in their current civilian lives.

Additionally the extra dimension the older, worldlier reservists brought to the platoon of young regular servicemen served as a steadying influence and gave them insight into a world they would not otherwise have encountered in their current roles.

This example is typical of the interaction that occurs throughout the defence force when reservists are brought together with regulars, either on operational deployments or for training activities.

The other real benefit that Reservists provide is to their employers and fellow civilian co-workers. This comes from the inherent aspects of military service which teaches servicemen and women skills such as practical leadership, team work, self discipline, pride, comradeship, as well as improving physical fitness. A CEO of an apprenticeship scheme recently commented on how the military provided essential skills that usually had to be provided by expensive consultants. She valued the partnership between Reserves and her organisation, and noted how the Reserves seemed to attract the brightest and most motivated of her young apprentices.

As we gather tonight, reservists from the three services are deployed in harsh conditions to the four corners of an increasingly unstable world. Their training and commitment will be put to the test and we must work hard to ensure that the sacrifices made by reservists, and the support they receive are recognised. That is what tonight's awards are all about.

Leaving home to become a soldier, sailor or airman for the weekend, or longer, can and does place a strain on partners and children who remain at home so family support also plays a significant role in enabling the reservist to serve. The support families provide cannot be overstated. Knowing that children and partners are cared for while a loved one is away is a significant factor in maintaining morale.

Uncertainty about what employment, if any, the reservist is returning is not something they should be thinking about while on operations. That's why the support of employers for reserve service is such a major factor for the Defence Force. It means that a reservist with a supportive employer can undertake a training activity or operational deployments, knowing that their job is waiting for them when they return and that their employer and colleagues in their work place are supporting them during the deployment.

In my view, every employer, large or small, who supports New Zealand society - be it through encouraging staff in the Forces or via scholarships, donations or community events - is a leader and worthy of our acknowledgement. However, as it is on operations - not every can win.

This evening, we have the opportunity to recognise and celebrate the specific commitment of 'the very few' employers who have excelled in their support to the cause of keeping all Kiwis safe. To you and all those like you - thank you - on behalf of a grateful nation.

ENDS