National Security (Volunteer Defence Corps) Regulations (Cth)

STATUTORY RULES.

1942. No. 37.

REGULATIONS UNDER THE NATIONAL SECURITY ACT 1939-1940.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the National Security Act 1939-1940.

Dated this second day of February, 1942.

GOWRIE

Governor-General.

By His Excellency’s Command,

F. M. FORDE

for and on behalf of the Minister of State for Defence Co-ordination.

 

National Security (Volunteer Defence Corps) Regulations.

Citation.

1. These Regulations may be cited as the National Security (Volunteer Defence Corps) Regulations.

Definitions.

2.—(1.) In these Regulations unless the contrary intention appears—

“member of the Corps” means any person enlisted in the Military Forces for service in the Corps;

“the Corps” means the Corps of the Citizen Military Forces known as the Volunteer Defence Corps;

“the Defence Act” means the Defence Act 1903-1941, and, if at any time that Act is amended, means that Act as so amended.

(2.) Subject to this regulation, words used in these Regulations shall have the same meaning as in the Australian Military Regulations.

Persons holding commissions.

3. —(1.) Where any person enlisted as a private soldier in the Military Forces for service in the Corps holds any commission or honorary commission as an officer in the Defence Force or any appointment as an officer of that Force or any other rank or appointment in any part of that Force, the commission, honorary commission, appointment as an officer or other rank or appointment, as the case may be, shall, for the purposes of his service in the Corps, be and remain in abeyance during the period that person is serving in the Corps.

 

* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on 3rd February, 1942.

787.—Price 3d.

 

(2.) Any commission, honorary commission or appointment as an officer or any other rank or appointment held in any of His Majesty’s Naval, Military, or Air Forces, by any person enlisted as a private soldier in the Military Forces for service in the Corps shall not entitle that person to exercise any command in the Defence Force or to any appointment to any rank in the Corps :

Provided that nothing in this regulation shall restrict or prohibit the wearing by a member of the Corps of any uniform and badges of rank which he would otherwise be entitled to wear when attending, while not on duty as a member of the Corps, a levee or any civic or public function at which uniform may be worn.

(3.) When any person referred to in sub-regulation (1.) of this regulation ceases to be a member of the Corps, his commission, honorary commission or appointment as an officer or other rank or appointment in the Defence Force (other than in the Corps) shall revive without any loss of seniority and be of the same effect for all purposes as if it had not been in abeyance.

Appointment and promotion of officers of the Corps.

4.—(1.) The Governor-General may appoint or promote a member of the Corps to any office in the Corps and may, without issuing to him a commission and notwithstanding that the member holds a commission, honorary commission or appointment as an officer or any other rank or appointment in any of His Majesty’s Naval, Military or Air Forces which is not in abeyance by virtue of these Regulations, grant that member an appropriate military rank in the Corps for the period during which the member holds that office, and may remove or suspend any member of the Corps from such office.

(2.) The Governor-General may delegate to the Military Board or to any officer or officers of the Military Forces of the Commonwealth within Australia power to appoint or promote members of the Corps to any office in the Corps in an acting capacity and to an appropriate acting military rank.

(3.) A delegation under this regulation may be made to an officer personally or by designation of his appointment and may be limited to the officer named or be extended to the person for the time being performing the duties of the appointment or to the successors in command of the officer.

(4.) A delegation shall be revocable at will by the Governor-General and shall not prevent the exercise of any power by the Governor General.

(5.) The revocation of a delegation shall not affect anything done under the delegation prior to the delegate receiving notice of the revocation.

(6.) A member of the Corps appointed or promoted to acting office and acting military rank under the powers conferred by this regulation shall cease to hold that office and rank, if the Governor-General refuses to confirm the appointment or promotion.

(7.) A member of the Corps whose appointment or promotion under this regulation is confirmed by the Governor-General, shall be deemed to have been appointed or promoted (as the case may be) from the date of his appointment or promotion under the powers conferred by this regulation.

 

(8.) Where the Governor-General refuses to confirm any appointment or promotion to acting office and acting military rank, every act, matter, thing, right and liability which, by virtue or in consequence of that appointment or promotion to acting office and acting military rank, is done, suffered, acquired or incurred between the time a member of the Corps was so appointed or promoted and the time at which he received notice of the Governor-General refusal to confirm his appointment or promotion shall be as valid and effectual as if it were done, suffered, acquired or incurred by a member of the Corps appointed or promoted by the Governor-General to the office and rank concerned.

(9.) Upon ceasing to be a member of the Corps a member shall cease to hold any office to which he has been appointed or promoted pursuant to this regulation.

(10.) Upon ceasing to hold an office to which he has been appointed or promoted pursuant to this regulation a member of the Corps shall cease to hold the appropriate military rank to which he has been appointed or promoted in the Corps.

Seniority.

5. —(1.) The seniority of members of the Corps appointed to be officers in the Corps in their respective ranks shall be regulated by the date of their appointments, and, when appointments are of the same date, by their seniority in the Corps immediately prior to their appointments, or, in the case of first appointments, by the order in which their names appear in the Gazette.

(2.) The regimental seniority of members of the Corps appointed to be officers in the Corps shall be as determined by the Military Board.

Employer not to prevent employee from serving.

6.— (1.) An employer shall not prevent an employee and a parent or guardian shall not prevent any son or ward from performing any duty required of him as a member of the Corps.

(2.) An employer shall not in any way penalize or prejudice in his employment any employee for performing any duty required of him as a member of the Corps or for enlisting or attempting to enlist for service as a member of the Corps, either by reducing his wages, altering his position to his detriment, dismissing him from his employment or in any other way.

(3.) The performance of any duty required of a member of the Corps shall not terminate a contract of employment and the contract shall be suspended during the absence of that member for the purpose of performance of that duty, but an employer shall not be liable to pay an employee for the period of that absence.

(4.) In any proceeding for an offence against this regulation it shall lie upon the employer to show that any employee proved to have been dismissed or to have been penalized or prejudiced in his employment was so dismissed or penalized or prejudiced for some reason other than that of having performed any duty as a member of the Corps or of having enlisted or attempted to enlist for service as a member of the Corps.

 

By Authority: L. F. Johnston, Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberra.