PAY IN BRITISH FORCES

Press, Volume LXXX, Issue 24370, 23 September 1944, Page 3

PAY IN BRITISH FORCES

INCREASES GRANTED

RATES ACCORDING TO YEARS OF SERVICE (8.0. W.) RUGBY, Sept. 21. All ranks of the British fighting services are to receive substantial pay increases. A White Paper announcing this, says that the increases may take a little time to put into effect, but will be retrospective from September 3. The plan is in two. parts. The first provides for an increase in pay for long •■ervice. Thus a private who was in the Army on September 3, 1939, and therefore will have completed five years of war service on September 3 this year, will be entitled to three increments—(l) Is for completing three years of service; (2) and (3), 6d for each of his fourth and fifth years. Therefore, from September 3 he will be entitled to another 2s a day above his present pay (4s 9d or 5s a day). The rates run up from Is a day extra after three years and 6d after each subsequent year for a private, to 3s a day after three years and Is a day for each subsequent year for senior cipmmissioned ranks below that of majorgeneral. It makes no difference how long an individual has been in his present rank. For example, a major who joined the Army as a private on September 3, 1939.’ and was commissioned in 1940, will be treated as though he had been a major the whole time, and will receive an addition of 5s a day. _ The second part of the plan is for service in the Far East. , According to the “Daily Express British servicemen transferred from the European theatre to the Pacific after Germany’s defeat will receive increased pay. The increases are expected to be substantial. A Tommy s basic pay is now 3s or 3s 6d a day, compared with the basic rates (sterling) of 8s 3d a day for Americans and 5s 2d a day for Australians. On the assumption that the war against Japan will largely be carried on in the air and at sea. nearly every man in the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy will_alsoreceive_a_big increase.