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Armed Forces: Personnel Management

Volume 470: debated on Monday 7 January 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 23 October 2007, Official Report, column 173W, on armed forces: personnel management, how many underpayments there were to Royal Air Force personnel between 1 January 2007 and 30 September 2007 classified by category of error; how many of these underpayments have now been corrected; and what changes have been made to the (a) payment system and (b) departmental processes following these errors. (174135)

From 1 January 2007 to 30 September 2007, other than a Change of Rank (see serial number 6 in the following table), there were no Joint Personnel Administrative system errors which affected RAF basic pay. During this period 1.83 million payments were made. Details of the Royal Air Force underpayments are given in the following table:

Serial

Type of Error

Service

Number

Action taken

January

1

Substitution Pay

RN and RAF1

620

Error corrected. Supplementary payroll run, payments one day late into bank. Average underpayment value of £150 per person.

March

2

Flying Pay for Reserve Band Pilot Officers, Navigators and Observers

RN and RAF1

54

Data and records manually correct and payments made. Average underpayment value of £170 per person.

June

3

Incorrect Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)

All1

90

Error corrected. SMP now being processed correctly. Individuals underpaid by 4 days salary per month.

4

Reservists' Home to Duty Travel (HDT) allowance

All1

10,752

Error corrected. All outstanding payments made in September. Average value distance related, typically £20 to £30 per person.

September

5

Non-Commissioned Officer Flying Pay

RAF

12

Error corrected. Refunds of Flying Pay paid in October. Underpayment typically 12 per cent. of that month's salary.

6

Change of Rank

RAF

666

Records manually corrected. Automated process refined. All records corrected for October's pay run. Underpayment of promotion uplift, typically 5 per cent. of basic pay.

1 The numbers of Royal Air Force personnel affected by these issues could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Service personnel who have been underpaid can request cash advances from their units.

Service personnel who have been underpaid can request cash advances from their units.