REPORT ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE STAFF COMMITTEE
DURING MARCH AND APRIL

This is a report on the activities of the Staff Committee during the ten meetings between March 1 and April 26, 2007, as well as on related topics.  It is presented by the Committee’s President and its members: Rene Gutierrez, Magaly Rothe, Gabriel Gross, Patricia Quiroz, Enrique Vidal, Lina Sevillano, Luis Batlle, Bruce Rickerson and Miguel Angel Merino with the assistance of Corina Alvarez, the Association’s Administrator.

            Several themes dominated the work of the committee during the period.  The escalating concerns of numerous staff members regarding issues that were often related to insecure feelings about their current and future status demanded that the Committee seek ways that are respectful, convincing, and effective in bringing staff concerns to the attention of management.  Likewise, the Committee sought to act in unity to promote constructive information flow with the administration.

The following is a partial list of substantive matters acted upon by the Committee during this period.

1.      Listening to the Concerns of Staff Members: The Committee listened to many of its members regarding specific concerns as well as those regarding the perceived mood within the Organization or specific areas.  Because it is essential to protect the confidentiality of these persons, it is impossible to enumerate these concerns.  It is important to note that the Committee, acting in unison, undertook a number of initiatives regarding individual difficulties. 

One theme that regularly repeated itself is that the loss of institutional memory in the Department of Human Resources in a very short time has had a very significant effect on the judicious and fair application of decisions by OAS political bodies, the Staff Rules, the General Standards and related decisions.  The Committee is primarily concerned with the impact of this situation on individuals and groups of employees, but the preservation of the application of the rule of law, an objective personnel system that is fair to all and predictable, is most important to the Organization.  In this sense, attempts by the members of the Committee to represent specific and general substantive concerns are not only correct, but they also may protect the Organization as well.

2.      Discussing Personnel Decisions and Procedures: The way that Human Resources makes decisions as well as the decisions themselves was of special concern to the Committee during March and April.  An informal series of unstructured conversations was offered as a way to exchange views.  However, members of the Association continue to express substantive concerns in a number of areas.

In a number of venues, the members of the Staff Committee urged the administration to keep in mind the decisions of OAS political bodies to adhere to a personnel system that is based on that of the United Nations.  This matter goes far beyond compensation, although competitive, fair rates of compensation are always important.  The Committee’s concern also goes to the preservation of UN standards in the writing of job descriptions and the evaluation of employees.  On every possible occasion, Committee members emphasized that this is not optional.  If necessary, the services of highly experienced and qualified persons in the United Nations personnel system will have to be contracted in order to preserve the will of the political bodies.

In addition, the Committee continued to assert that policy and related decisions benefit from including appointees of the Staff Committee from start to finish in any consideration.  Fundamental changes in personnel and other policy benefit when the staff have a real sense of ownership and substantive participation protects those who work here as well as the administration.  Sincere collegiality has benefits to individuals and groups of employees as well as to the OAS as whole/

3.      Decision by Administration to Move Staff Association Offices: During this period, the Committee received verbal indications that the administration intended to relocate its offices. Initially, the Committee had to fight to remain in the GSB, noting that the Secretary General himself decided to have offices there in order to be closer to the staff and to many of the units of the OAS.  The Secretary General assured the Committee that he would undertake to make available suitable alternate space in the GSB.  The result was the eventual move of the Committee offices from the third to the sixth floor.  In this smaller space, the Committee intends to continue to provide its wide range of services, including giving all of us the opportunity to make purchases from its Gift Shop and strengthening the Committee by providing additional income as well as publicizing visibly the OAS.

4.      Briefing by Budget and Finance Professional: Considerable concern was expressed, especially by General Service employees, when Personnel Circular 08/07 seemed not to communicate the rationale for the proposal or how the decisions were made. 

To this end, the Committee invited the cadres to discuss this issue and any others of concern to them.  Both listened to a detailed, professional explanation of the GS decisions from Mr. Sergio Pino of the Department of the Department of Budget and Financial Services.  The procedure is very complex and the OAS makes its decisions based on somewhat different baselines than, for example, the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) or the UN.  Mr. Pino assured the Committee and the cadres that the system was just and that it maintained the philosophy of “no gain, no loss,” particularly when it relates to the calculations.

Because of the complexity of this system, it is probably unwise to attempt to describe them in this kind of summary.  However, the OAS has experts, such as Mr. Pino and others, with a wealth of detailed knowledge of these matters.  They have demonstrated their willingness to address this matter of concern and to provide useful information. 

5.      Briefings by Other Experts: The Committee also received the enlightened views of other persons with deep knowledge of the OAS system.  Among the matters discussed were contracts for results (CPRs), OAS regulations requiring competitions for vacant posts, rules requiring fairness in the setting of beginning salaries of persons coming to the OAS, and many related matters.  The Secretary General may decide that exceptions to rules may be appropriate.  However, the Committee believes that the rule of law and fairness should apply to all cases. 

The Secretary General repeated his commitment of competitions for all vacant posts during a meeting with members of the Staff Committee.  The Staff Committee is convinced of his commitment, but also asserted that vacant positions should be advertised and filled by competitions.  It also notes that current OAS personnel should be given the opportunity to compete for these positions as a special priority in view of their knowledge and experience within the Organization.

Other issues were also discussed with experts.  In addition to discussions with senior administration representatives, the Committee believes that it is essential to listen and learn from all.

6.      Parking Fund and Parking Policies: A vacancy occurred on the Joint Advisory Committee on Employee Parking and Committee member Luis Batlle accepted an appointment to the vacancy.  He reports that the financial condition of the parking fund appears to be very healthy, but that there are indications that the parking fees will be increased.  He also reported that five percent of the parking spaces may be assigned by the Director of the Department of General Services.  The Committee urged Mr. Batlle to learn on what basis those positions are assigned, especially in view of the long waiting periods that are required to be considered for this important benefit (which is standard in other international organizations in Washington.  It would appear that the rule permitting immediate parking only for persons at and above the level of Director may not be applied in all cases.  The continuing value of balancing the need to provide parking fairly was emphasized by the members of the Staff Committee.

7.      Meeting of Committee Members with Secretary General Insulza: As reported elsewhere, Committee members met with the Secretary General to discuss pertinent issues of concern.

8.      Staff Awards Ceremony: The Staff Awards ceremony was held during the period to recognize those who have achieved milestones in their careers at the OAS and to award the Terry Woods prize given by the Staff Association for consistent excellence.  It was awarded to Ms. Linda Poole, a career employee in the Office of Conferences and Meetings.  Although Ms. Poole was in Panama, planning for the General Assembly, she sent a written acceptance statement, which was read by the 2006 winner, Ms. Anna Chisman of CICAD. 

The statement is so important that it is reproduced here, “The rule of law and due process are the cornerstones of any system regulating relations between staff and the employer organization. Our staff representatives who are elected to articulate the concerns and interests of all their colleagues as well as to promote and protect staff rights, must always ensure respect for these fundamental principles as bulwarks against the consequences of unfettered exceptions and privileged treatment for a few. During my entire time here, I have seen the role of the Staff Association evolve and strengthen in many positive ways and have had the opportunity to play a role in that process. Terry Woods and those who have received the award before me set a very high standard to meet and it is--for me--a signal honor to have been proposed and selected to receive this recognition.” 

In Spanish, “El estado de derecho y el debido proceso son las piedras angulares de todo sistema que regule la relación laboral entre el personal y el empleador. Los representantes del personal, quienes son elegidos para expresar las preocupaciones e intereses de sus colegas, así como para promover y proteger los derechos de los funcionarios, deben siempre garantizar el respeto de estos principios fundamentales como salvaguardia contra las consecuencias de las ilimitadas excepciones y el trato privilegiado que algunos reciben. Durante todo el tiempo que he estado aquí, he visto cómo las funciones de la Asociación de Personal han ido evolucionando y fortaleciéndose de muchas maneras positivas y he tenido la oportunidad de desempeñar un papel en ese proceso.  Terry Woods y todos los que han recibido este premio antes que yo lograron un alto nivel de excelencia, y es para mí un honor que se me haya propuesto y seleccionado para recibir este reconocimiento.”

The Staff Association and the Staff Committee were extremely surprised when the Rowe Award was not given.  This extremely important award, which has always been given in recognition of lengthy service to the OAS of deep dedication and high quality, was not given in 2007.  In a statement that clearly misunderstands the importance and nature of this award, the administration unilaterally announced that it was delayed because of the alleged need to reflect the new employee evaluation system.  Such a position trivializes the award by associating it with transitory evaluations of employees solely by their supervisors.  It might be possible to institute a new award for this purpose, but failing to adhere to the historic participatory process and focusing on immediate instead of the long-term contributions to the Organization must, in the opinion of the Staff Committee, be rectified.

9.      Petition from Staff Members: Responding to the wishes of significant numbers of members, the Staff Committee convened a Special Staff Assembly on April 18, 2007.  Forty staff members requested this action, and asked for the opportunity to have a space to discuss their serious concerns on several matters.  Consistent with the goals of the members of the Committee, the Assembly was another attempt to place these concerns before the administration with the purpose of initiating a respectful, fully interactive process that would recognize the value of treating the staff as full partners.

The Assembly was well attended and several staff members spoke compellingly about their experiences and perceptions.  When it was alleged that any perceptions were caused by the rapid changes in the OAS, it was mentioned that change, per se, is not the problem, but rather the gap between the rhetoric of transparency and participatory decision making and actions.

It was announced during the Assembly that the Staff Committee would hold two seminars to consider the whistle blowing policy of the OAS and important issues regarding the rights of employees.  Ms. Poole’s statement was read during the meeting to emphasize again the importance of fair, consistent, objective policies and actions in the context of the rule of law.

10.  Congratulations to the Secretary General and the Administration for Financial Strengthening Efforts: The Committee is well-aware of the Herculean efforts of the Secretary General and senior administration officials to change the financial course of the Organization of American States to prevent it from dying of starvation and, conversely, to allow the Organization to function in a more effective and focused manner as the premier political body in the hemisphere.  The Committee sincerely appreciates these efforts and realizes that, with the committed leadership of the Secretary General, catastrophic results can be avoided for the Organization and all staff members.

The significance of the dedicated work of Ambassador Frank Almaguer, Assistant Secretary for Administration and Finance, and for the team that he leads, cannot be overemphasized in this regard.

11.  Continuing Contract Process: The process to consider candidates for the Continuing Contract, a system to provide more security to employees after the ending of the Career Service, began during the period.  The Department of Human Resources assured the staff that the process would be completed, and the winners announced, by April 30, 2007. 

Members of the Staff Committee are participating fully in the review and consideration part of the Continuing Contract process.

12.  Vacancy for Attorney to Represent Staff Interests: During the period, the lawyer under contract with the Committee to represent staff interests, as needed, resigned.  The Vice President of the Committee is heading the effort to recommend alternatives.

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            Numerous other matters were acted upon by the Committee during this period, usually with unanimity.  The items above are summaries of some of the major actions.  In the interest of time and space, the list above is the shortest possible.   

            The Committee notes that a question from the floor during the Staff Assembly referred to the previous existence of an Ethics Committee at the OAS and raised the matter of an objective Ombudsman for possible future consideration and action.