In the Australian Army, the NCOs perform most of the physical duties and management. Lance corporals and corporals are called junior NCOs, while sergeants, staff sergeants, warrant officers class two and one are classified as senior NCOs. Officers in the Australian Army perform paper work duties whilst in a barracks environment while the NCOs ensure discipline is being maintained. In battle, it is the senior NCOs that ensure the soldiers are doing their job, while the officers are looking at the wider tactical picture.
In the New South Wales Police Force, NCOs perform supervisory and coordination roles. The ranks of probationary constable through to leading senior constable are referred to as "constables". All NCOs within the NSW Police are given a warrant of appointment under the Commissioner's hand and seal.
All officers within the Australian Defence Force Cadets are non-commissioned. ADFC officers are appointed by the Director-General of their respective branch.
Canada[edit]
In the Canadian Forces, the Queen's Regulations and Orders formally defined a non-commissioned officer as "A Canadian Forces member holding the rank of Sergeant or Corporal."[7] In the 1990s, the term "non-commissioned member" (NCM) was introduced to indicate all ranks in the Canadian Forces from recruit to chief warrant officer.[8]
By definition, with the unification of the CF into one service, the rank of sergeant included the naval rank of petty officer 2nd class, and corporal includes the naval rank of leading seaman; Corporal also includes the appointment of master corporal (naval master seaman).
NCOs are officially divided into two categories: junior non-commissioned officers, consisting of corporals/leading seamen and master corporals/master seamen; and senior non-commissioned members, consisting of sergeants and petty officers 2nd class. In the Royal Canadian Navy, however, the accepted definition of "NCO" reflects the international use of the term (i.e. all...