Coworkers and friends:

First off, I would like to thank all those who, with their votes, placed their trust in me in the last election, and those who would have liked to do so but could not because of the type of contract they have! To our colleagues in the offices of the General Secretariat in the member states, a special greeting, and our pledge to maintain ongoing communications and find ways to consult you so that you feel you are an active part of the Association. I know I can count on all of you as integral parts of this OAS community, to which everyone who works at the Organization belongs.

Being at this podium is not easy for me. My prior work on the various committees has been behind the scenes. So I ask for your understanding and patience. Since I very much believe in teamwork, I plan to continue along those lines and not to have to speak much but to keep the staff informed through periodic communications.

I would like to go into more detail about some of the points mentioned in my message before the election–points I believe to be the most important for the term of the committee being installed today. It goes without saying that one of this Staff Committee’s missions will be to safeguard staff rights at all times and ensure that they are respected without distinction.

A new administration.... Here we go again with a new administration....

Here we have staff committed to their work and to the ideals of this Organization, ready to work on the tasks they receive so as to improve the future of our peoples. I hope we will be able to meet with the Secretary General-elect and/or his transition team at the earliest opportunity. I believe it is extremely important for the staff to know what the short-term and medium-term goals are and what impact they may have on the staff.

We often hear that statements are made in the Permanent Council to the effect that such high staffing costs cannot continue–ignoring the fact this is a service organization and, therefore, its greatest asset is its staff. Regardless, we have seen the career service practically eliminated and institutional memory pushed aside without a second thought.

We trust that the new administration will reconsider these matters. We trust the staff can again feel its contributions are valued and it can enjoy job security, which, in turn, will benefit the Organization. In this regard, it is essential that the administration review the various types of contracts, make benefits more equitable, and make procedures more transparent. We know well that many areas of the General Secretariat, if not all, have been forced to use performance contracts for functions that are clearly permanent, creating different classes of “citizens." We also know this has been caused by constraints imposed by the governing bodies.

I should also say we are aware of the financial and budgetary situation facing the Organization; in fact, it has caused alarm and insecurity among the staff, and continues to do so. Here, clear and open communication with the new administration is indispensable. Staff must be told what is happening in a timely manner. What we have witnessed at least three times already this year–not knowing, at mid-month, whether there will be cash to pay salaries, whether contracts can be renewed, whether the offices in the member states will be able to pay their rent, etc.–must not continue.

The governing bodies and the Secretary General-elect, in the meetings they have already begun, must define and specify priorities among the mandates issued both by the General Assembly and by the various high-level meetings. And these mandates cannot be fulfilled without a budget that is sufficient or the willingness of member states to increase it. As we have seen so many times, in the end it is staff members who suffer from these shortfalls. We hope the new administration understands that saving money at the expense of staff or blaming the financial crisis on staffing costs will get us nowhere.

The priorities of this Committee will also include continuing the effort begun by the outgoing Committee on harassment in the workplace; René has just informed us that the project is nearly complete. We would like to see this take shape in a formal General Secretariat policy in the near future.

On other matters, I have heard that the General Secretariat is not paying overtime to general services staff and giving comp time instead (this also costs the Organization, though not in cash). I have also heard that some supervisors insist that their secretaries work late and sometimes keeping them from important appointments outside the office even though they have vacation hours and want to use them. Some people have complained that the new cubicles are not ergonomic, that the chairs give them back pain, that their eyesight is deteriorating, etc. A survey could be conducted to determine whether the problem is widespread; the administration could then be asked to correct the situation; this too would produce savings in medical costs.

Before closing, on behalf of the staff, and on my own behalf, I want to thank René and his entire team for their work for the staff and for their actions to strengthen the financial base of the Association, such as the sale of products bearing the OAS logo.

Again, thank you for your confidence in me. I am counting on all of you, on your ideas, and on working as a team.

Now, in the absence of Alfonso Munévar, Principal Representative of the Retirement and Pension Committee, I offer the floor to Daniel Perna, our Alternate Representative on that Committee.

REMARKS BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE STAFF ASSOCIATION ON THE RETIREMENT AND PENSION COMMITTEE DURING THE ANNUAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF STAFF, 2004
(read by Daniel Perna)

At this Staff Assembly, at which the new leadership of the Staff Association is installed, I want to express, in absentia, my appreciation to all my colleagues, both at headquarters and away from headquarters, who placed their trust in me by electing me as their Principal Representative to the Retirement and Pension Committee.

My colleague Daniel Perna and I are very committed. We are ready to work as part of a team within the Committee to ensure the financial soundness of the Fund and, at the same time, to seek an equitable distribution that includes growth in participants’ accounts.

As on previous occasions when there has been a change in representatives, the practice is that the outgoing representative attends and participates in the meeting at which the Committee decides on credits to participants’ accounts as of June 30. Therefore, the representatives-elect will attend that meeting as observers and will be able to follow that decision-making process closely.

In addition, I want to take this opportunity to state that, during conversations with the Treasurer of the Retirement and Pension Fund, Daniel Vilariño, the Treasurer gave us preliminary financial data as of June 30. This information, though not final, is a very close approximation, and leads us to conclude that the Fund is on its way to recovery from a deficit position. This situation has persisted for two or three years, since the stock market underwent financial upheaval. From the conversations mentioned, we also concluded that the Committee has been paying careful attention to managing the deficit.

When I return, I will have a chance, together with Daniel Perna, to learn about the financial situation of the Fund as of June 30, 2004, in more detail.

Our election for this voluntary service is a great honor and a great challenge. We believe we have a mandate from the staff to work for a gradual, equitable replenishment of reserves in a manner that takes into account the interests of all participants.

We look to the future with optimistic enthusiasm. We have not lost hope that the volatile state of the financial world will improve, and that, with higher returns on investments, we will be able to maintain the soundness of the Fund and an equitable distribution with growth in participants’ accounts.

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