Low value on soldier’s sacrifice
Sharon McLeay
Times Contributor
Ron Howard, a retired military serviceman, is questioning how much a veteran’s service and sacrifice is worth to the Canadian government. According to the inadequate benefits awarded by a tangled system to gain pensions and services, Howard reasons service is not valued much.
“It is the governments obligation on behalf of the people of this country to look after veterans. If they are going to ask them to serve, they better bloody well cough up what they owe,” said Howard.
He said he is tired of the lip service given to veteran issues. Howard said he, and other veterans like him, are disgusted by the photo opportunities taken by self-serving government officials, followed by inaction on veterans behalf within the Veteran Affairs department.
Howard has 14 years of service. He served with NATO forces from 1963-1975 and also served in Cyprus peacekeeping efforts in 1980-1982. His regiments were the Lord Strathcona Horse (Royal Canadian) and The Fort Garry Horse. He currently receives a seven per cent disability payment, for hearing loss and back injuries incurred while in service.
“It is indigenous to the armoured core, infantry and artillery; where you get a bad back lugging stuff and bad hearing with heavy artillery-guns going off. It took me four years and three months to finally get a medical disability pension from the DVA (Department of Veteran Affairs),” said Howard. “I had to prove to them that I served in a special duty area, which is what Cyprus was called in those days, and sustained injuries when I was there. I sustained injuries on special duties while at a United Nations posting. I had to prove it to them. I shouldn’t have had to, because the documentation was there. “
Pensions are awarded by injury formulas modified by factors of when service occurred, length of service, injuries sustained and proof of no pre-existing conditions. Howard said there is not a consistent definition of a veteran either, with each military conflict category coming under different rules and conditions for benefits. Howard’s service falls under old contract guidelines and he is not eligible for the revised or new awards.
It took Howard years of complicated back and forth processes to receive his pension, which he has heard is a pretty standard delay for most veterans.
“Veterans are greatly hindered by bureaucracy in Ottawa. The people employed by veterans affairs are working for the government; it is who they owe their allegiance to and they don’t have an obligation to the veterans,” said Howard.
He thinks case workers are told to save money and turn things down all the time. He said there are reams of paperwork required.
“There are too many rules and regulations that hamper the veteran. It should be simplified, so you are able to go ahead on your own time, with government assistance; there shouldn’t be a lot of paperwork or bureaucratic stupidity. The procedure is so lengthy and time consuming, most guys give up,” said Howard.
Howard is not alone in his views. In September 2013, the Supreme Court awarded six veterans, who fought in Afghanistan, the right to sue the government under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms for better compensation. One of the members was Daniel Scott, who lost a kidney, spleen and part of his pancreas in an explosion and was only awarded $41,000. In new revisions to veterans benefits, lifetime pensions were taken away in favour of lump sum payments, with most awards not providing reasonable compensation.
Glen Kirkland was a fifth generation soldier who sustained burns from fire, hearing loss, shrapnel wounds, eye trauma, a pancreas injury and PTSD from an IUD blast. In order to get a pension, he had to remain in service 10 years. His injuries made it impossible for him to stay in service to reach that requirement, or meet the universality of service rule, so the federal government discharged him without a pension, returning his pension contributions.
“If you are going to support the veterans of this country, then support us. Do not have veterans resort to suing the government. Don’t have enormous payouts. Put people on regular pensions, which we rightly deserve because we served our country,” said Howard. “When we signed on the dotted line, or basically took the Queen’s shilling as they said in the days of old, we signed a blank cheque for our (butts), for the government to send us anywhere they deemed fit, to put us in harm’s way anywhere they wanted us to go.”
Howard said that a regular adequate pension gives more compensation in the long term and affords the veteran a way to contribute to society, well into his eighties.
Pension amounts are currently not adequate and also subject to claw backs. Howard lost $9,600 per year when he turned 65, and he did not even want to discuss the lost pension surpluses that were confiscated by the government and used to pay down the national debt. Responses he got from government officials regarding his pension claw-back indicate the issue is not up for review or discussion. Soldiers requiring long term facility care are also experiencing long wait times before treatment facilities spots are available. www.ombudsman-veterans.gc.ca
Howard suggests those currently wrangling with the federal bureaucracy obtain and keep copies of medical and service information, so that it can be supplied if it is missing from the official files. He suggests veterans bring their files to their Branch Service Officer and ask him to contact their Provincial Command Officer, so he can help address the file with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Howard suggests it is in the government’s best interest to offer good benefits and wages to those willing to serve. It is estimated 4,000 recruits are needed yearly to keep enlistment numbers at a premium. With better high paid job opportunities, with good benefit incentives, fewer Canadians are looking to the military as a career option. Howard suggests those lower numbers are also setting up those that do serve for injury eventualities. Enlisted personnel have no right of refusal for repeated redeployment into combat zones.
“We keep regrinding people, and sending them over to these places. Eventually it will catch up with them,” said Howard.
Howard said change is too slow, even with advocacy from supportive organizations.
“I think even with enough veterans organizations, and there are quite a few across the country, and the Legion itself, especially Dominion Command (Legion headquarters), that get onto it, which they have done in the past and continue to do so; it takes a long time to stir the government to move on certain things,” said Howard.
In true military fashion, Howard encourages everyone fighting for personal or group veterans rights, on to continued effort.
“Persevere,” said Howard. “Do not give up ever, no matter how difficult or what you have to do, continue until you get the final result and a pension.”