Mr. Speaker, the well-being of Canadian Armed Forces, or CAF, personnel is of the highest priority to the CAF and National Defence, and the retention of trained and experienced personnel is fundamental to the professionalism and operational effectiveness of the organization. The Defence Team wants every Canadian to see service to Canada within the CAF as a first-rate career choice, which is why efforts are underway to strengthen how the organization recruits, retains, and takes care of its people.
With regard to (a) and (c), National Defence and the CAF recognize that military service places unique demands on CAF members and their families, including unique cost-of-living challenges due to operational tempo and job requirements. The CAF is also experiencing a shortfall in personnel, and the Defence Team is undertaking significant reconstitution efforts to make the organization stronger and more effective.
Your Say Matters: Defence Team Well-Being Survey, or YSM, is a survey aimed to obtain Defence Team members’ attitudes, perceptions, and experiences on a broad range of work and organizational factors related to well-being, organizational culture, and retention.
The 2022 YSM was administered, at random and in anonymous format, to members of the Defence Team, including CAF members, Regular and Primary Reserve, and National Defence civilian personnel, between March and May 2022, with approximately 8,000 CAF respondents. The results showed overall that the responding CAF members have moderate levels of morale, with more than a third of the respondents reporting low morale.
With regard to (b), National Defence is committed to improving the morale and welfare of the CAF and have implemented a number of initiatives in support of this effort. This includes delivering a 12.03% cost of living increase for CAF members and covering rations and quarters for members who have not yet completed all qualifications required for their first employment in their military occupation.
The CAF is further advancing meaningful culture evolution efforts to help build a more inclusive environment. Since its creation in 2021, Chief Professional Conduct and Culture conducted engagement with over 16,000 Defence Team members and external stakeholders to listen and learn from their lived experience, which informs the way forward to improving the culture within the Defence Team.
Ensuring that our soldiers, sailors, and aviators are equipped with modern and effective equipment also remains a priority for National Defence. This includes continued investments through Strong, Secure Engaged. For example, since 2017, the Government of Canada has developed a clear plan of action to modernize continental defence, including an investment of $38.6 billion over 20 years in NORAD modernization, and delivered critical new equipment to the CAF. This includes the purchase of F-35 advanced fighter aircraft, Canadian Surface Combatant ships, Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships, Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicles and the Medium Support Vehicle System.
Finally, further initiatives will be launched in 2024 as efforts continue to create a healthier work environment for all to thrive and achieve increased operational readiness and effectiveness.