The country's military officers have warned their patience is running thin and said if any other organisation had been treated as badly as the Defence Forces they would have taken industrial action by now.

Putting troops through battleground training exercises involving live bullets and grenades has been severely curtailed due to the lack of suitably-qualified officers.

Officers in the Defence Forces feel betrayed by their employers, because military personnel were left out of “side deals” given to gardaí, prison officers, and firefighters as part of the latest Lansdowne Road pay agreements.

Army officers say our military will always be at a disadvantage if does not match offers from other employers.

An adjudicator for the Defence Forces has claimed it was “bizarre” that a dispute over allowances, paid to a soldier on a Department of Defence overseas training course, should have lasted 16 years.

The exodus of officers from the Defence Forces continues and, if it is not addressed, it could seriously affect its operating capabilities.

One in 10 officers has resigned from the Defence Forces in the past two years after becoming disillusioned with the job.

Private companies, including discount giant Aldi, have been actively seeking senior defence force personnel at such a rate that top brass warn the military is at serious risk of “not being fit for purpose”.

Some army officers with young children may be forced to seek Family Income Supplement because they can’t afford to travel to new postings due to the disbanding of a brigade.

LAST December, Defence Minister Alan Shatter decided that, as a result of a cut in the maximum permitted strength of the Defence Forces from 10,500 to 9,500, a reorganisation would take place including a reduction in army brigades from three (with headquarters in Dublin, Cork and Athlone) to two.

“It would not make sense to first build a factory and only then decide what to make in it.

ARMY officers have expressed concern over pay systems within the Department of Defence after 1,300 members of the defence forces were not paid their monthly salary on time.

Army security duties like escorting prisoners and cash shipments to banks are putting a heavy toll on military resources, it was claimed today.