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Page history last edited by PBworks 17 years, 6 months ago

 

Shared in accordance with the "fair dealing" provisions, Section 29, of the Copyright Act.

 

Injured troops lose danger pay when home

Glen Mc Gregor, Ottawa Citizen, 4 Oct 06

 

Canadian soldiers injured in Afghanistan are returning home to find they have been cut off from the extra danger pay they received serving in Kandahar.

 

The Department of National Defence says its pay-and-benefits policy dictates that even injured soldiers lose the special allowances they receive for fighting in danger zones.

 

Canadian Forces members are eligible for extra pay for risk, hardship and foreign service, or a combination of all three, as is the case in Afghanistan.

 

A corporal on his second rotation in Kandahar, for instance, receives an additional $2,111 a month on top of a salary that ranges from $4,069 to $5,190.

 

The allowances are tax-free and base salary is also tax exempt up to $6,647 on risky missions.

 

But once a soldier is injured and leaves Afghanistan, the additional benefits end and his or her paycheque returns to its previous level.

 

DND spokesman John Knoll says there is a discretionary extension to allowances for up to 25 days while the injured soldier is in transit or being treated out of country -- at the U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, for instance. But once in Canada, the benefits end.

 

Liberal MP Dan Mc Teague says he was shocked to learn that soldiers who risk their lives were getting docked for pay they would have received if they didn't get hurt.

 

"I think that's a very shabby way our way to treat our soldiers," he said.

 

"What does that say for morale? We look like a bunch of cheapskates to our soldiers who need us at this time."

 

He said the increase in injuries in Afghanistan requires to the government to change the policy now. Since 2001, at least 158 Canadian soldiers have been injured, while 39 have died, including injuries yesterday.


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