Defence Determination 2013/6, Post indexes – amendment

I, PETER JOHN REDSTON, Acting Director General People Policy and Employment Conditions, make this Determination under section 58B of the Defence Act 1903.
Dated 4 February 2013
P J REDSTON
Acting Director General
People Policy and Employment Conditions
Defence People Group

PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

1
/
Citation
1. / This Determination is Defence Determination 2013/6, Post indexes – amendment.
2. / This Determination may also be cited as Defence Determination 2013/6.
2
/
Commencement
This Determination commences on 14 February 2013.
3
/
Amendment
Defence Determination 2005/15, Conditions of Service, as amended,1 is amended as set out in this Determination.
4
/
Annex 15.2.A (Post indexes)
substitute
the Annex set out in the Schedule
NOTE
1. / Defence Determination 2005/15, as amended to date. For previous amendments see Note to Defence Determination 2013/1and amendments made by Defence Determinations 2013/1, 2, 3 and 5.

1

SCHEDULE
Annex 15.2.A: Post indexes
Posting location / Applied index / Published index
BELGIUM / 102.7 / 102.7
BRUNEI / 100.0 / 71.0
CAMBODIA / 100.0 / 68.9
CANADABritish Columbia / 103.3 / 103.3
CANADAOntario / 100.4 / 100.4
CANADAQuebec / 100.0 / 99.8
CANADA Other / 100.0 / 99.8
CHINA / 115.7 / 115.7
EAST TIMOR / 100.0 / 97.5
ETHIOPIA / 100.0 / 70.4
FIJI / 100.0 / 81.8
FRANCEParis / 108.1 / 108.1
FRANCE Other / 100.0 / 97.9
GERMANY / 105.2 / 105.2
INDIA / 100.0 / 65.6
INDONESIA / 100.0 / 81.7
IRAQ / 100.0 / 0.00
[Note: no price data is available for this location.]
JAPAN / 136.7 / 136.7
JORDAN / 100.0 / 88.0
KIRIBATI / 119.5 / 119.5
KOREA / 120.6 / 120.6
KUWAIT / 100.0 / 76.7
MALAYSIA / 100.0 / 74.5
MARSHALL ISLANDS / 104.1 / 104.1
MICRONESIA / 100.0 / 87.1
NETHERLANDS / 100.0 / 96.9
NEW ZEALANDAuckland / 102.9 / 102.9
NEW ZEALANDChristchurch / 100.0 / 99.0
NEW ZEALANDWellington / 101.4 / 101.4
NEW ZEALAND Other / 101.1 / 101.1
PAKISTAN / 100.0 / 53.3
PALAU / 100.0 / 96.2
PAPUA NEWGUINEA / 132.7 / 132.7
PHILIPPINES / 100.0 / 74.5
SAMOA / 100.0 / 90.7
SAUDI ARABIA / 100.0 / 64.1
SINGAPORE / 108.3 / 108.3
SOLOMON ISLANDS / 117.6 / 117.6
SPAINMadrid / 100.0 / 94.5
SPAIN Other / 100.0 / 89.1
THAILAND / 100.0 / 83.0
TONGA / 100.0 / 97.1
TURKEY / 100.0 / 89.5
TUVALU / 119.6 / 119.6
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES / 100.0 / 72.1
Posting location / Applied index / Published index
UKLondon / 105.2 / 105.2
UK Other / 100.0 / 93.0
USAAlaska / 100.0 / 91.5
USACalifornia / 100.0 / 93.7
USAColorado / 100.0 / 80.3
USA Connecticut/Rhode Island / 100.0 / 88.0
USAFlorida / 100.0 / 86.3
USAGeorgia / 100.0 / 81.5
USAHawaii / 100.0 / 97.9
USAIllinois / 100.0 / 90.6
USAManhattan / 103.1 / 103.1
USA Maryland/Virginia, including WashingtonDC / 100.0 / 90.7
USAMassachusetts / 100.0 / 88.0
USAMissouri / 100.0 / 83.6
USANew YorkState, excluding Manhattan / 100.0 / 98.1
USATexas / 100.0 / 80.8
USAWashingtonState / 100.0 / 87.2
USA Other / 100.0 / 88.0
VANUATU / 116.4 / 116.4
VIETNAM / 100.0 / 65.7

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Defence Determination 2013/6

This Determination amends Defence Determination 2005/15, Conditions of service (the Principal Determination), made under section 58B of the Defence Act 1903 (the Act). Chapter 15 of the Principal Determination sets out provisions dealing with living and working on long-term posting overseas for members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

The purpose of this Determination is to implement revised post indexes for ADF members at overseas posting locations. A data service provider works out the post index from local prices surveyed in March and September each year. An exchange rate movement in the national currency of 2 per cent or more since the post indexwas last varied then prompts an amending Determination to vary the post index.

Clause 1 of this Determination sets out the manner in which this Determination may be cited.

Clause 2 of this Determination provides that the Determination commences on14 February 2013 to allow for administrative changes to be communicated across Defence.

Clause 3 specifies that the amendment is made to the Principal Determination, as amended.

Clause 4 substitutes Annex 15.2.A of the Principal Determination. The new Annex changes post indexes at a range of posting locations. The changes are due to recent exchange movements.

The applied post index increased for Belgium, France – Paris, Germany, Korea, and UK London. The applied post decreased for Japan, Marshall Islandsand Tuvalu. No changes are made for the applied post indexes in other locations.

Clause 4 also adjusts the published index in the third column of Annex 15.2.A for nine locations with published indexes of less than 100. If the published index is less than 100 and was also less than 100 prior to this amendment, there is no effect on overseas living allowance, so benefits for members in that location remain unchanged.

Criteria are provided for the exercise of discretions under the Principal Determination, as amended by this Determination. Adverse decisions are subject to merits review under the ADF redress of grievance system, including an appeal to the Defence Force Ombudsman.

Authority: Section 58B of the
Defence Act 1903

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Defence Determination 2013/6, Post indexes – amendment

This Determination is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Determination

Defence Determination 2013/6implements revised post index adjustments forADF members in overseas posting locations. Post indexes are used for calculating overseas living allowance.

Human rights implications

This Determination engages the following human rights:

Right to the enjoyment of just and favourable conditions of work

The protection of a person's right to remuneration engages Article 7 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Article 7 guarantees just and favourable conditions of work, including remuneration, safe and healthy conditions, equal opportunity and reasonable limitations.

Legitimate objective: Defence members are posted to perform duty in overseas locations. This could cause the member and their family economic hardship if the location has a high cost of living. The purpose of a post index is to show the relative cost of living at a posting location compared with Australia. This is then used to calculate various overseas allowances.

Reasonable, necessary and proportionate: This Determinationadjusts thepost indexes to ensure thatan affected person continues to receive just and favourable remuneration. The post indexes and associated overseas allowances assist the member and their family to not suffer a disadvantage because of the requirement for the member to live and work overseas.

Conclusion

This Determination is compatible with human rights becauseit does not limit any human rights.

Peter John Redston, Acting Director General People Policy and Employment Conditions