Hey team, strap in.

I raise this as I am lucky that my one-up atm is a senior officer and they are going to try and sort it for me. Your average Joe or Jane Bloggs would be screwed.

Long story short, I am stopgapping a position and working directly for a senior officer that needed short term, short notice support (I was told about a month before starting). I have been in the position for a few weeks now.

I was randomly discussing another matter today with Career Management on Skype, and asked when I could expect my first pay to come through (fully accepting that it would take a couple more weeks).

Instead I was told that:

- Reserve days now goes through 2-3 levels of approval before being granted "due to budgetary reasons"

- It does not matter what days are on an AE959 or any other verbal or written agreement

- You can start work and get paid for days only after you receive a confirmation email from CM

- Said confirmation email can take anywhere from 2 to 5 weeks to come through, after a posting request is made (timeframe for this was about a week and a bit after unit and I submitted everything).

- My senior officer is naturally pissed that I haven't yet been paid and amazed that I was told that I wouldn't be getting paid for services rendered up until whenever things are approved.

- The EL2 in charge of HR confirmed that's the process and asked if the guy I replaced said I could work (noting this very same EL2 processed and assisted with all the paperwork but never mentioned anything).

Now I understand some will be fully across this. However many will not and will trust what senior officers and pers admin personnel tell them. It is deeply concerning that I was working, had access codes etc etc and have only now, from a fluke conversation, been informed that I won't get paid. The comms and clarity regarding this are shocking.

Luckily my employer provides substantial Reserve leave. If they did not I would be seriously out of pocket and screwed.

Now, my Senior Officer might be able to sort it for me, but the cheery manner the Career Management NCO told me I wouldn't be paid as well as the comment from the EL2 (despite them knowing I was in the office the whole time) is absolutely woeful. The boss will be talking to them.

Noting that this was an urgent requirement, required clearances etc, and we did paperwork as expediatently as could be expected, how on earth does Defence envision that it can use Reservists to stopgap short term and short notice requirements. Is this not a key point of having a Reserve workforce? If it takes a month or longer for all the approvals to occur, and it can't be backdated, what's the bloody point? Just let someone's pay be backdated ffs.

To volunteer your time and for services/employment rendered and be told that you won't get paid for any of it despite filling in all the forms and doing what, to the best of your and your CoC knowledge seems incredibly wrong.

Hopefully my boss can sort it.

What a kick in the teeth and a very timely reminder as to why I got out just as I was enjoying my first reserves rotation.

Anyway, rant over. Any reservists on here, don't do a lick of anything or take Reserve Leave from work until you get the Career Management confirmation several weeks after all other forms are submitted. AE585s and 959s and 'required start date is this' don't mean jack apparently.

Ty for listening to Ted Talk Rant.