Section 2: Leave of Absence, Assignments and Transfers

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2-1. Overview
2-2. Initial Assignment
2-3. Transfers
2-4. Transfer of Role
2-5. Transfer to Reserves
2-6. Transfer to/from Expeditionary Air Wing (EAW)
2-7. Submission of Extended Leave of Absence (ELOA)
2-8. Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR)
2-9. Discharge Request
2-10. LOA Procedures
2-11. Battlegroup HQ Discharge and Transfers
2-12. Holding Section

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2-1. Overview

In 4IB, all members are assigned to our ORBAT in specified positions that define their responsibilities and their respective Chain of Command (CoC). Some positions that are held also dictate the rank that can be assigned to those positions and how members that hold those positions may be promoted within our Promotion Structure.

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2-2. Initial Assignment

After successful completion of the Phase 1 Training Program and/or Defence Technical Training, all members are assigned to a position within 4IB.

This assignment will in most cases be done to best accommodate the new members time constraints. However, all assignments shall be made with Operational Capabilities in mind, meaning that an individual’s preference on where they are assigned may not be met.

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2-3. Transfers

Transfers can be requested by any member for several reasons these include:

• Transfer of Role
  
• Transfer to Reserves
  
• Transfers to/from Expeditionary Air Wing (EAW)
  
• Submission of Extended Leave of Absence (ELOA)
  
• Discharge Request
  

All above means of transfer are administrated by J1 Staff.

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2-4. Transfer of Role

Transfers are made on a case-by-case basis and therefore are not guaranteed. Within 4IB, transfers are any positional moves requested by the member to another position, including E-LOA and Reserves.

All members must serve a minimum of 60 days within their assigned positions within the ORBAT unless authorised to transfer by their relevant Platoon HQ or Squadron Commander and then approved by Battlegroup HQ. They may then request a transfer if agreed by their current and prospective CoC. Exceptions to this authorisation can be made if the transfer destination is under Urgent Operational Requirement (UoR) however, this still needs to be communicated with current and prospective CoC.

Command Staff and J1 Staff maintain the right to reject any transfers in the interests of Operational Effectiveness and also for issues of discipline or attendance.

Please reference the Order of Battle (ORBAT) for more information on what roles are currently open to transfer. Additionally inquiries can be made via CoC whether there are open roles in certain areas of the unit.

It is important to remember that we are all here to have fun, as such we will try to facilitate everyone’s wishes, however, this is not always possible.

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2-5. Transfers to Reserves

Any member of 4IB who can no longer meet the agreed attendance requirement for their respective detachment set by Battlegroup HQ, have the option to transfer to the Army Reserve Centre 1 (ARC1). You must inform your current CoC before posting a transfer to ARC1 as outlined in Section 2-4, transfers of this type are also subject to the 60-day rule. The 60-day requirement is not waivable in regard to transfers to reserves.

Within the reserves, you are not required to meet the 50% monthly attendance minimum required for active members and can fill in for people that are on Leave of Absence (LOA) on any given Operation Night. Your direct CoC whilst in reserves is the current Regimental Sergeant Major, if one is not in post another member of Battlegroup HQ will make themselves known as the current CoC for reserves.

However, as a reservist you are expected to attend/sign up to two of the operational events as set out by Battlegroup HQ. If you go 1-Month without attending this requirement, you will receive a message from J1 Staff / Battlegroup HQ to explain the missed attendance. If this message is not responded to after a 5-day period of the message being sent, the reservist will be discharged. Repeat violation of the attendance requirement will also result in the reservist being discharged.

Reservists will keep their Substantive Rank but will lose all Acting Rank. Upon requesting transfer out of ARC1 there is no guarantee that the reservist can return to their previous position or their previous rank, as outlined in 2-4.

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2-6. Transfers to/from Expeditionary Air Wing (EAW)

Any member transferring to the Army Air Corps (AAC) or the Royal Air Force (RAF) from within Expeditionary Air Wing (EAW) as a pilot must complete the following courses before said transfer is completed:

• Squadron Specific Training as outlined in Section 9-7.
  

They will then transfer across at the appropriate rank within the respective detachment. Any ranks within Expeditionary Air Wing and 4IB that have the potential to be equal or greater than that of the Officer Commanding are limited to one rank below that of the Officer Commanding to help define a clear Chain of Command (CoC) for all members.

Any members transferring to the AAC or RAF, within EAW as Ground Crew must have an interview conducted by the relevant Squadron Commander before any transfer is completed.

Members who are transferring into, within and from EAW must meet the rank requirement as outlined in Section 9-7 and will be placed based on Operational Requirements as outlined in Section 2-2.

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2-7. Submission of Extended Leave of Absence (ELOA)

Any member of 4IB who cannot attend their assigned operation nights for anything longer than a 21-day period must inform their Chain of Command (CoC) before submitting a transfer to ELOA as outlined in Section 2-4.

An estimated return date must be provided, along with an explanation as to why they require transfer to ELOA. Transfer requests without this information will be rejected by J1 Staff.

Members within ELOA will keep their Substantive Rank but lose any Acting Rank they hold. There is no guarantee that a returning member will return at the same rank or same position they held prior to transferring to ELOA. The rank and assignment will be dealt with by Battlegroup HQ as per Section 2-4.

The limit of which an ELOA Transfer can extend to will be determined on a case by case basis by relevant CoC and Battlegroup HQ.

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2-8­. Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR)

Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR) is when Battlegroup HQ need to fill critical positions within the ORBAT to fulfil Operation Requirements.

When UOR is declared for transfers, the following points shall be followed:

• A transfer can be approved for immediate processing by Battlegroup HQ.
  
• A transfer can be approved for immediate processing if all involved parties agree.
  
• Role Requirements are negated.
  
• 60-Day waiting period between transfers is waivered.
  

Positions that are under UOR will be recruited for via approval from Battlegroup HQ.

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2-9. Discharge Request

If a member wishes to discharge from 4IB, a 3-Day Cooldown period will be placed on the respective discharge, allowing time for any change of circumstances. This Cooldown period can be opted out of if desired.

If the member wishing to discharge holds the rank of Corporal (Cpl), equivalent or above, they are both required to notify their Chain of Command (CoC) and then have an interview with Battlegroup HQ before submitting a Discharge Request as outlined in Section 2-4. This is due to the nature of the position and the responsibility that the member holds within 4IB. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action as outlined in Section 7-2, AGAI 67, Mi. 5.

If the Officer Commanding wishes to discharge, they are requested to notify the existing Battlegroup HQ of their intentions so that a suitable replacement can be appointed.

There are multiple categories in which a member will be transferred to once a discharge request has been processed, these categories are outlined below:

All personnel who discharge from 4IB will retain Battle Honours and Unit Support Ribbons against their account unless that individual is Dishonourably Discharged.

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2-10. Leave of Absence (LOA) Procedures

A leave of absence is required from all members of 4IB, wherein they have prior knowledge they will not be able to attend a mandatory event. Each Detachment has a respective area of the forums to post Leave of Absences, the format of which will be found in these respective areas.

All Leave of Absences must be notified via the forums no later than 3-Hours before the current start time of 1900 GMT.

When a member fails to submit a Leave of Absence for a mandatory event the following actions are to be taken:

1st AWOL Offence:

• Update Attendance Register with an Absent (Red) marker.
  
• The Section/Squadron Commander sends a Minor (Mi. 7) warning via PM within 48-Hours of the offence via the forums. The J1 Disciplinary Admin is CC’d into all of these warnings for administrative purposes. This warning will stand on that members
  

Personnel File (P-File) for 30-Days. A representative from Battlegroup HQ, Platoon Sergeant and the Section/Squadron 2IC are also to be CC’d into this message.

2nd AWOL Offence:

• Update Attendance Register with an Absent (Red) marker.
  
• The Platoon Sergeant/Squadron Commander sends a Major Warning (Maj. 1) via PM within 48-Hours of the offence via the forums. The J1 Disciplinary Admin is CC’d into all of these warnings for administrative purposes. This warning will stay on that member’s P-File for 90-Days. A representative from Battlegroup HQ, Platoon Sergeant and the Section/Squadron IC and 2IC are also to be CC’d into this message.
  
• Additionally, after the 2nd Offence – If no contact has been made with CoC from the offending member, or a transfer request to either ELOA or Reserves has been made. The member may then be discharged at the Platoon/Squadron Commander’s discretion, this discharge must be approved by a representative from Battlegroup HQ.
  

A leave of absence is not a request, it is a member informing their CoC that they are not going to be in attendance. At 4IB we understand that sometimes people might not feel like playing one evening and submitting a Leave of Absence stating this, is more than acceptable. However, should we find out that members are intentionally lying in Leave of Absences for example by stating that they are away and are found to be playing other games – then that members honesty and integrity will be questioned, this could result in disciplinary action as outlined in Section 7-2, AGAI 67, Gr. 10.
 
Leave of Absences must also be posted to notify CoC of expected Late Attendance. Please estimate where possible the expected time of arrival for these types of LOAs.
 
Leave of Absences can be posted for up to but not exceeding a 1-Month period. Anything exceeding a 1-Month period will constitute an Extended Leave of Absence (ELOA) as outlined in Section 2-7.
 
Unforeseen Leave of Absences can be posted after the event to inform the CoC of the reason for the delayed or lack thereof a prior Leave of Absence. The Platoon HQ reserve the right to act out Section 7-2, AGAI 67, Mi. 7 if the reasoning behind this is not just.
 

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2-11. Battlegroup HQ Discharges and Transfers
 
Battlegroup HQ reserve the right to at any time review any member and decide if that member is not meeting or is likely to not meet all SOP or AGAI requirements. If the member is not likely to meet these requirements, Battlegroup HQ can process a discharge for that member under Section 2-11 in accordance with Section 7-2, AGAI 67. These measures are in place to prevent further offences from being committed and are in the best interest of the unit.
 

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2-12. Holding Section
 
Applicants who have completed the Application Process and/or members returning from ELOA or Reserves may be transferred into the Holding Section if an appropriate opening cannot be found immediately.
 
Members within the Holding Section will have the ability to fill in where space permits on any Operation Night in which they can attend, the process of which the member will be informed about prior to being transferred to the Holding Section.
 
Members within the Holding Section will be placed into a Detachment as and when an appropriate opening can be found.