Soldiers’ body ‘inundated’ with concerned callers

The association representing soldiers, sailors, and aircrew is “inundated” with phone calls from members concerned at the reduction in the number of brigades in the force.

Members are worried that the relocation involved will not be voluntary, and that people will be compelled to move from Dublin to Athlone and from Cork to Limerick, with major implications for their families.

Defence Minister Alan Shatter last month announced changes to the structure of the Defence Forces, reducing the number of brigades from three to two.

He said he was doing so on foot of a number of reports from the chief of staff and the secretary general of the department, which also included a revised ceiling of 9,500 personnel for the force.

PDFORRA, the organisation representing soldiers, sailors and aircrew, has already expressed its “bitter disappointment” at the reorganisation, saying it would lead to 500 job losses — a figure rejected by the minister.

In a statement yesterday, the association said it was being bombarded with calls from concerned members about the implications of the changes.

General secretary Gerry Rooney said there appeared to be confusion as to whether or not the servicemen and women would have an option of voluntary relocations.

He said some of the related movements of personnel will involve relocating from Dublin to Athlone and vice versa. He said several hundred personnel in Cork may also have to move to Limerick. Mr Rooney said all of this would have “significant implications” for families.

“We have been visiting various barracks recently to establish the full extent of the impact of this recent downsizing on our members,” he said. “There is immense concern in several key locations about the criteria for relocating personnel — and it is now emerging that the actual extent of the movement of personnel is much greater than expected.

“It is important for all involved in this downsizing of the Defence Forces, including the minister, to know that the Croke Park agreement deals with the important matters of ‘reskilling’ and ‘voluntary relocation’, in such circumstances.

“We are now actively seeking clarification from management on the criteria being used for moving personnel from one post to another.”

A spokeswoman for the Department of Defence said PDFORRA were being consulted on the reorganisation. She said discussions were ongoing and that they were working through some issues.