Source · Select Committees · Defence Committee
Recommendation 87
87
Accepted
Haythornthwaite Review recommends flexible service and total reward to boost recruitment and retention.
Conclusion
The Haythornthwaite Review ‘Agency and agility: Incentivising people in a new era’, was an independent study commissioned by the MOD and published in June 2023. The Review looked at a number of areas where recruitment and retention could possibly be improved within the UK Armed Forces. 183 Q349; 427 184 Oral evidence taken on 12 December 2023, HC (2023–24) 54, Q40–2 185 Q212 186 Q23; 37; 67 187 Oral evidence taken before the Public Accounts Committee on 22 January 2024, HC (2023–24) 451, Q114 188 Policy changes relating to the MOD’s engagement with industry are covered in the final chapter on strategic readiness. 36 Ready for War? Box 3: Agency and agility: Incentivising people in a new era The Review considered the offer to personnel in relation to: their accommodation and food; their family life; their career structure; working conditions and renumeration; the training available to those in service; and a reduction in bureaucracy.189 The most far-reaching recommendations related to career structure, working conditions and renumeration: the ‘spectrum of service approach’ and the ‘total reward approach’. The spectrum of service approach (often referred to as the ‘zig zag career’) is a recommendation to replace the current blanket terms of service with individualised ones. This would allow an individual to determine their engagement type, engagement length, compulsion, mobility and military training factors, making their service much more flexible. The Review describes this as allowing the differing expectations placed on those serving to range “from those giving 24/7 whatever their Service asks of them, to increasing levels of control over working patterns or geographical stability, through to occasional weekends or short-term projects”. It would also allow personnel to leave and re-join the service after working in a different profession (such as in government or industry). The total reward approach, a complementary recommendation, would allow personnel to determin
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the need for the right people and skills, outlining priorities for increasing recruitment and improving retention. It highlights measures from the Haythornthwaite Review and Defence Command Paper 2023, such as pay increases, zig-zag careers, and a new Transformation Directorate, to address staffing challenges.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
As a Government, we recognise the responsibility to ensure our Armed Forces have the right people in the right place with the right skills, both now and in the future. This is never more pressing as we face global challenges not seen since the middle of the twentieth century. Despite an ever-increasing technological landscape, we know that people continue to be a critical factor in Defence. We are also committed to our Armed Forces remaining a career of choice for new generations. They should be attracted by modern and flexible offers which seek to reflect contemporary motivators and expectations and encourage them to remain in or contribute directly to defence throughout their military careers and beyond. Defence recognise that we must compete in a challenging labour market where there is huge demand for many of the key skills the Armed Forces needs to recruit and retain. This same challenge is faced by Armed Forces globally. We must address complex levers of retention; both positive and negative, to ensure that the best appropriate offer is available to everyone. The Armed Forces, both regular and reserve service, has been a driver of social mobility throughout history, and it is our responsibility to build on the opportunities offered to help people achieve their potential. The Haythornthwaite Review’s 67 recommendations were all accepted in the Defence Command Paper refresh in 2023 and a formal HMG response to each one of the recommendations will be published during 2024. The formal Govt. response will outline next steps for delivery and implementation for each recommendation, reflecting a broad roadmap for recruitment and retention for the short and the longer term. Key indicators will be captured regularly and reported to all stakeholders to measure progress. It will set out clear progress already made in priority areas and demonstrates how Defence is working fast to speed up recruitment, support the retention of the people we have, and build a people system that is aligned to and evolves with society. The work we are already undertaking will transform how we approach recruitment and retention, moving away from a base-fed model and one-size-fits-all culture to one based on the agility and autonomy of a mission-command approach. We are prioritising transforming the Department’s workforce model to attract and retain the talent needed to operate those capabilities. All three services continue to have the personnel needed to meet their front-line operational commitments, but we are not shying away from this challenge. Increasing recruitment and improving retention are absolute priorities, including improved career opportunities and making it easier for people to re-join, on top of the largest pay increase in more than 20 years. Last year, we laid out pay increases for Armed Forces personnel that will see the highest pay increase targeted towards junior service personnel, providing up to 9.7% for junior ranks and 5.8% for officers. The Haythornthwaite Review and Defence Command Paper 2023 set out measures to address future staffing challenges, such as a changing labour market, with a comprehensive approach. This ranges from zig-zag careers where people can leave and re-join the Armed Forces, through to reviews of pay and progression. Defence has now stood up a new Transformation Directorate which is driving delivery and building a clear plan to create a people system that constantly evolves to compete in an agile and aggressive labour market.