From the Staff Committee 2011-2012
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October 4, 2011
SN-16/11-12 Original: Spanish/English
Summary of Activities of the Staff Committee
July – September 2011
The OAS Staff Committee, elected for the period 2011 – 2012, took office on July 11, 2011. During the reported period, it has been working with determination to address matters that affect the staff of the Organization and their rights. For that purpose, it met with representatives of the Administration, including the Secretary General, Assistant Secretary General, Secretary for Administration and Finance and the Director and other staff of the Department of Human Resources. Additionally, it has worked on promoting awareness about its role among its members as well as with the Permanent Missions to the OAS.
A result of its work to date is presented in the following report.
1. Meeting with the Assistant Secretary General: The OAS Staff Committee met with the Assistant Secretary General on July 25, 2011 to present the main concerns raised by the staff and discuss the challenges facing the Organization. The 2012 budget deficit and its impact were addressed. Additionally, the Staff Committee commented on the need to accelerate the competitions for expired and/or reclassified posts and the publication of the list of staff eligible for continuing contracts. The proceedings of this meeting were published on August 5, 2011, in Staff News SN-9/11-12.
2. Meeting with the Secretary General: The OAS Staff Committee met with the Secretary General on August 3, 2011 to discuss the current situation of the budget and its impact on staff members; the methodology used to regularize the contracts of staff members whose statutory deadline for competition has expired as well as of those undergoing reclassification who have been receiving special duty allowances for more than 18 months; and the publication of a list of staff members eligible for continuing contracts. The proceedings of this meeting were published on August 12, 2011, in Staff News SN-10/11-12.
3. Courtesy visits to the Permanent Missions to the OAS: On August 12 and 13, 2011, the Staff Committee issued a letter to the 34 Permanent Missions of the OAS in order to introduce the newly elected Staff Committee members to the Permanent Missions and to raise awareness about the role of the Staff Association. Upon their request, the Staff Committee has met with several missions. Issues of common interest to all staff were discussed. To date, the Staff Committee has met with 14 Permanent Missions. Meetings with another four Permanent Missions are scheduled for the month of October. At the suggestion of several missions, the Staff Committee is working on a position paper which will submit to the consideration of the Secretary General and the Assistant Secretary General.
4. Presence of Staff Committee at the meetings of the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs (CAAP): The President and members of the Staff Committee have been present at almost every CAAP meeting held between August and September 2011, where negotiations are ongoing on the 2012 Program Budget Proposal presented by the Secretary General. A Special General Assembly is scheduled for October 31, 2011 to approve the OAS 2012 Budget.
5. Issues discussed with the Department of Human Resources: On July 27, 2011, the Staff Committee sent a letter to the Director of Human Resources in which it requested a meeting to discuss several pressing staff matters, including:
- Order assigned to the list of positions to be opened for competition in 2011 and 2012;
- List of staff eligible for continuing contracts competition;
- Proposed Program-Budget for 2012 and its impact on staff;
- Civil unions and paternity leave;
- Review of outcomes of the Personnel Evaluation System (PES) pilot phase;
- Position control system;
- Changes in staff title as a means to standardize post descriptions; and
- Code of ethics.
On September 13, 2011, the Secretary of Administration and Finance and the Director of Human Resources received the Staff Committee to go over many of these issues. The main concern raised by the Staff Committee was the impact of the proposed 2012 Program-Budget on the staff. A reduction of 18 posts financed through the Regular Fund and 18 posts financed through Indirect Cost Recovery (ICR) is expected in order to adjust personnel costs to the budget ceiling approved at the last General Assembly. The Staff Committee reiterated that these personnel actions must adhere to the norms of the General Secretariat and recalled the commitment made by the Administration of prioritizing voluntary retirements.
The Staff Committee also requested a complete list of staff members whose competitions are upcoming because their appointments under short term contracts is about to, or has exceeded, the three-year limit established by the Staff Rules, or due to a reclassification of the post. The goal of this request is to ensure that the schedule for competitions set by the Department of Human Resources is transparent, equitable, and fair to all staff. Although the Staff Committee acknowledged the efforts made in this regard, it renewed the request to explore alternatives to speed up the process. Staff members not being appointed through competition are deprived of certain benefits as long as said competitions are pending. Finally, the Staff Committee reiterated its request for continuing contract competition, in observance of the applicable Staff Rules and General Standards of the General Secretariat.
A letter from the Department of Human Resources was received on August 19, 2011 in response to the Committee’s request for information due to concerns raised by the staff regarding the position control system. In this letter, clarifications are provided regarding the implementation of the position control system, including the assurance that it does not affect staff’s rights and benefits. Additionally, the Staff Committee was informed that this is an ongoing process and that the next phase of the position control system exercise will take place shortly. The Staff Committee requested to be actively involved in reviewing the complete process and provide its inputs before it is fully implemented.
With regard to civil unions and parental leave, the Secretary of Administration and Finance informed the Staff Committee that the Department of Legal Services is working on the language of the resolution that will be presented to the Permanent Council.
Finally, the Secretary of Administration and Finance and the Director of Human Resources expressed that they would call for a special meeting with the Staff Committee to review the results of the 2010 pilot phase and first round of the 2011 cycle of the Performance Evaluation System. At a meeting on this matter held on September 23 2011, the Staff Committee was presented with a report of this process. The Staff Committee raised concerns over the system, offered suggestions to improve it and requested the establishment of the Performance Evaluation Review Committee, as well as the review of the Memorandum that governs the OAS performance evaluation process.
6. Request for Advice to the Department of Legal Affairs: On August 4, 2011, the Staff Committee requested the advice of the Department of Legal Affairs on the newly implemented position control system, its impact on the rights of personnel and its relation with the categorization applied by the United Nations. This request was reiterated on September 27, 2011. No response has been received to date.
7. Creation of the FYI informative space: The Staff Committee created this space to provide staff regularly with information on its rights and duties. Three editions of the FYI have been issued thus far on the rules that govern the relations between OAS staff and the General Secretariat. If you have any suggestions for future FYIs, please send them to [email protected].
8. Terry Woods Award: From August 8 to 22, 2011, the Staff Committee received candidate nominations for the 2011 Terry Woods Award. After careful deliberation, a decision was reached. The award recipient will be announced at the Staff Awards Ceremony to be held on October 24, 2011 at the Hall of the Americas.
9. Meetings of the Staff Committee: Eleven Staff Committee meetings and six ad hoc working meetings have been held during the reported period.
10. New Contributing Staff Association Members: During the reported period, 28 staff became contributing members of the Staff Association. If you are not a contributing member and would like to become one, please contact the Staff Association ([email protected]).