The Naval Re-employment Centre (ZWE Mar) at the Neustadt in Holstein site is a sub-unit of the Naval NCO School. Its mission is to ensure the reintegration of former servicewomen and men - including those from other branches of the armed forces - into the navy.
Due to changes in the framework conditions, such as the abolition of age restrictions for re-entry into the Bundeswehr, there has been a noticeable influx of former servicewomen and men into the armed forces in recent years. In this context, as part of a project to make basic training capacities more flexible and increase them, the organisational units were requested in 2016 to "waive the complete repetition of basic training (GA) for re-enlisted personnel and to provide additional training for missing training content under their own responsibility".
The Personnel, Training and Organisation Department of the Naval Command examined options for action for the naval branch of the armed forces. This resulted in the establishment of the ZWE Mar at the Neustadt site on 1 November 2017.
Physical fitness is essential
The idea of a "Centre for Reintegration Navy" - the working title officially defined by the Inspector of the Navy - was born, like many other creative ideas for the benefit of the Navy, on the fringes of the Navy's Historical-Tactical Conference, in the "Sidetalk". The aim of the ZWE Marine is
1. the establishment of an attractive and flexible offer for the re-enlistment of all ranks in the Navy,
2. reintegration and utilisation of personnel in the navy as quickly as possible. This should take into account the desire of those returning to service for a short training period with an explicit waiver of the repetition of basic training, a rapid improvement in personnel readiness and a reduction in training capacity.
3. low administrative effort.
During the conceptual and preparatory phase, extensive studies had to be carried out on stationing as well as needs assessments of the necessary training capacity and conceptual work for the implementation of the training. Particularly with regard to stationing and infrastructure, the desired resources could only be provided with great effort and with the help of the construction administration.
Scepticism was expressed from many sides. What a crazy idea: a centre for reinstated soldiers - what has the naval command come up with? Where is the common sense? Well, we only like to attribute common sense to those who agree with us ...
The basic training will not be repeated
On 2 April 2018, the first 25 training participants began their service at the MUS branch in Neustadt. In addition to a general basic check-up and familiarisation, a broad training programme is on the schedule: in the areas of internal leadership and law, service on board, physical fitness, as well as emergency medical service and - the reader may rub their eyes in amazement - formal service at the express request of the training participants. As of December 2020, a total of 512 soldiers from private to frigate captain have completed the training programme since it began.
Today, the navy has a small but very efficient "inspection", which ensures that former soldiers from all organisational areas, regardless of rank, are accepted at the beginning of each month and qualified for their future posts in the navy. Fundamentally necessary general military requirements are taught in a four-week training programme that consciously incorporates the personal skills and knowledge of all training participants - do it yourself - The training programme revitalises the training of the new recruits as part of a competence-oriented training course, thus laying the foundations for a transfer to the future core unit. The daily work is enjoyable and, according to the feedback from the training participants and the navy, extremely successful.
The value of this facility should not be underestimated! The proportion of re-enlistees in the armed forces has been growing for years. Their task is to bring their civilian and military knowledge and skills to the target post after a very short time. These target duty stations are primarily found in operational units and commands that do not have their own recruitment organisation. The ZWE relieves these units of the unpopular task of recruitment administration and thus makes a significant contribution to the operational readiness of the units and commands.
Retired Staff Captain Marten Sommerfeld was the first unit commander of the ZWE Marine.
Photos: Bundeswehr/MUS, Bundeswehr/Björn Wilke
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