Reservists have once again proved their value to the Australian Defence Force by contributing critical skills to the Indian Ocean tsunami relief operation.

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Defence Teresa Gambaro said the ADF had so far committed about 1000 personnel to the operation.

"Among those service personnel are more than 40 Defence Reservists, part-time members of the Navy, Army and Air Force who are undertaking a number of vital tasks," Ms Gambaro said.

"Their involvement in the operation highlights in a very effective way the important contribution they make to the ADF.

"The fact that many of them would have cut short their holidays or left their civilian jobs at very short notice to help in this tragedy, I believe demonstrates to employers and the community that they are an essential and integral part of the ADF."

Reservists deployed include medical and nursing staff (general and orthopaedic surgeons, anaesthetists, GPs, a gynaecologist), a water-quality expert, pilots and psychologists, as well as public affairs officers and chaplains.

"Some of these skills aren’t required full-time in the ADF, but Reservists – often specialists in their fields in their civilian positions – are able to bring them to the ADF at short notice or in times of emergency.

"We draw on the skills and expertise of the Reserve forces to help deliver Defence capability, and recent operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, East Timor and the Solomon Islands have demonstrated the value of the Reserves as a professional, effective and flexible force."

Ms Gambaro also paid tribute to the employers who had released their Reservist employees to deploy on the operation.

"I’d like to pay particular thanks to the employers whose people have taken leave to be part of the mission.

"In situations like these, Reservists need to be confident their employer supports their involvement in the Reserves and their employment is secure when they deploy.

"Equally, the Government understands the impact such an absence has on employers, which is why it provides financial support under the Employer Support Payment Scheme.

"The employers can be proud that they have also made a valuable contribution to helping the victims of the tsunami."

Michelle Smytheman (Teresa Gambaro) 07 3283 4277 or 02 6277 4433 or 0418 777498

Defence Media Liaison 02 6265 3343 or 0408 498 664