Gregory Lick likes to think of his office as people’s “last resort” – or, better, their “first resort.”
As the Canadian Armed Forces ombudsman, Lick and his 80-member team work to point people in the right direction, answer questions, head off a problem or escalate it, as needed, with neutral and confidential observations and recommendations to higher command and government.
Lick visited 14 Wing Greenwood and Camp Aldershot November 20 to 24, with a number of scheduled opportunities for Defence Team and family meetings. Retired from both the Naval Reserve and 35 years with the Canadian Coast Guard, with 5,000 people under his command; Lick had about “10 hours off” before taking on this role.
“It’s like coming back home – like back where I started, getting to work one-on-one every day and trying to help people,” he says. “A lot of it is listening: if I was a marine engineer, I think of our job as the ‘oil’ in the machine, making it work more smoothly so people have better careers and life experiences.”
When there are problems, frustrations or people feel they’ve been unfairly treated, the CAF ombudsman is an option for support, answers or even advocacy. Lick says information is key for everyone, at all levels: the biggest commonality in concerns his office hears relates to paperwork, process, time delays, levels of consideration and approval – and disapprovals, increased responsibilities on decision-makers, under-resourcing and backlogs. The office receives about 16,000 inquiries every year from close to three million potential constituents in the CAF, veteran community, cadets, civilian employee pool, CAF applicants and the families of all of these groups. Eighty per cent may be handled in just a few days, pointing people to helpful information and resources. Another 20 per cent of cases may need more work, but the ombudsman’s office works with the lowest, most engaged levels possible, or reaches across to other government departments and agencies as needed.
“We do have a 100 per cent response rate, and we can’t do better than that – except faster,” Lick says. “We make headway on a daily basis, just by getting people help and information. Canadians are working at home and around the world for us, and we – Canada – has to ensure the safety net of support is under all they do. Members are due that.
“We don’t look at decisions, and people may not always like what we say, but we can consider if a decision was fair, followed all the process and procedure, elements were documented – or if there are maybe more serious, complex concerns: we escalate them up the line.”
On this Valley visit, Lick met with Reservists, families, Public Servants, civilian workers, the Transition Centre and its personnel, health centre staff, visited Camp Aldershot and more. A highlight was a portion of the evening family session spent with three youth – a first.
“Usually in the family sessions, youth don’t speak up. We tried this, looking for a different perspective, and they’re input was very refreshing and great to hear – we’ll continue that going forward.”
Lick and his visiting team also had the opportunity to visit 413 (Transport and Rescue) Squadron and “fly” in the simulators at 404 (Long Range Patrol and Training) Squadron.
“What I see here, and at every base, is a passion to do the job – military, civilian,” he says. “We can not forget about the basic needs of people who work within the organization.”
The Office of the Ombudsman was created to increase openness and transparency in the CAF and the Department of National Defence, and to ensure the fair treatment of concerns raised by CAF members, departmental employees and their families.
For information on, and to contact, the ombudsman, visit ombuds.ca, or call 1-888-828-3626
