The Foreign Service Journal, February 2003

Marking Time Initially, being evacuated can actually be nice in some respects. Compared to the grueling days they were likely working at post because of the crisis, some evacuees enjoy having a regular schedule and reconnecting with families, friends and colleagues. And being back in the department even temporarily gives officers a chance to network and work on lining up an onward assignment. This is particu- larly true when the crisis passes and everyone is able to go back to post after the initial 30 days. But if it doesn’t, the novelty of being Stateside can rapid- ly wear off. As one official acknowledges, “It doesn’t help to keep people in limbo. They need to return to a stable professional position. The family needs a stable environ- ment, too.” During the evacuation period, some allowance is made for officers to “swap” if one needs to leave post for 30 days, with an evacuee returning to give a colleague the opportu- nity to decompress. However, this is not always a smooth process. For example, one member of a tandem couple who had returned to Washington with their young daugh- ter was sent a cable instructing her to return to post for 30 days. As happy as she was at the prospect of rejoining her husband, she was dismayed that their child was not even acknowledged on her travel orders. As she put it, “Was I supposed to abandon her?!” Accordingly, while she was willing to die for her country, the FSO refused to return to post without her daughter, thereby putting her career at risk and prolonging the separation from her husband. At the same time, it should be noted that some officers (particularly single ones) are eager to accept a temporary assignment to a danger post to advance their careers. Being prepared is undoubtedly the best way to mini- mize the disruptiveness of an evacuation. The FLO Web page, at http://state.gov/m/dghr/flo/c1991.htm, co ntains an extensive list of very helpful documents, links and contact information. But no matter how well-prepared you are, an evacuation is neither pretty nor easy. In general, it seems that State does a reasonably good job of minimizing the stress both for employees and their families. However, effective employment of officers during their time in limbo needs more attention. F O C U S 24 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 3 Contact us today! • Ford • General Motors • Chrysler • Audi • Volkswagen Authorized Independent Distributor For Ford, DaimlerChrysler Corporation, General Motors, Audi and Volkswagen of America To The Diplomatic and Foreign Service Community We guarantee you the Lowest Price! Web site: www.diplosales.com E-mail: diplosales@diplosales.com Phone: (516)496-1806 Fax: (516) 677-3701