The Foreign Service Journal, March 2006

organization I have ever worked for. I hope we’ll bring the resources in line with the commitments.” Have you felt pressure to accept an Iraq assignment? Most respondents said they had not felt direct pres- sure to volunteer. Many did point to indirect pressure, including the messages being sent out by various bureaus calling on people to volunteer. A number of respondents pointed out that the staffing difficulties exist at the mid- and senior levels. Because entry-level assignments are essentially directed assign- ments, this is not surprising. Several entry-level respon- dents note that they had volunteered to serve in Iraq but were not selected to go. “As a JO, I desperately want to serve in Iraq,” says an FSO bidding on her second post. She cannot bid on the one Baghdad position on the list because it includes language training and she’s already had language training. “I find it frustrating that I want to serve, but can’t. … Let those of us who want to serve, serve. … We are intelligent people who learn quickly. That is why they hired us. We can do the job.” What can management do to make Iraq service more attractive to volunteers? Many respondents said that until the security situa- tion improves, there is nothing management can do to make service more attractive. Beyond security, sugges- tions included better financial incentives and calls for management to provide more information to employees about the reality of the working and living conditions in Iraq. Among those who have served in Iraq, many say more experienced officers are needed there, and call for more assistance to families during those postings as well as more assistance with onward assignments. A number of respondents, focusing on the Iraq ben- efits package, call for immediate implementation of the law passed in December that raises the cap on hardship and danger-pay differentials from 25 percent to 35 per- cent. A management officer serving in Baghdad echoed the comments of many colleagues: “The new 35-percent danger-pay and 35-percent hardship-differential caps need to be implemented now.” A number of people serv- ing in Iraq suggested that efforts be made to make Iraq pay tax-free. Several point out that military personnel have tax-free status when serving in a combat zone, and the same should apply to the Foreign Service. Others point to a need for more information about the realities of service in Iraq. Several respondents called for management to invite recent returnees to hold informal meetings with possible volunteers to give a clearer sense of what it is really like to serve in Iraq. One employee who served in the Iraq Support Unit in Amman doing in-processing for Foreign Service person- nel heading there comments: “I was always surprised by the number of people who seemed to realize they were headed to a war zone only when we issued them Personal Protective Equipment. People who had all the information, warts and all, were the people who seemed happiest.” “Management doesn’t have the will to listen to ‘grad- uates’ [of Iraq and Afghanistan service] and then put the F O C U S 38 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / M A R C H 2 0 0 6 A Senior-level FSO Baghdad | May 2003 My favorite memory is of the “Giant Voice” that would boom “Take cover!” whenever there was an incoming mortar. We were instructed, when in our trailers, to dive under our beds whenever the Giant Voice directed us to take cover. The first time the Giant Voice did so when I was in my little box of a home [during the night], I dutifully attempted to dive under my bed, only to discover that it was impossible, because there were only four inches between my bed and the floor. Then, as an alternative, in something of a dither, I attempted to pull my mattress on top of myself. I succeeded only in tipping over my bed lamp and the bedside dresser, and then, to my dismay, discovered that the floor space was not ample enough to accom- modate the mattress. So, I gave up, put my mattress back on the bed, and crawled back into bed. Ten minutes later the Giant Voice boomed “All clear” and I turned off the light and went to sleep. Later, I never paid much attention to the Giant Voice. I always thought that it would have been more appropriate for the Giant Voice to have said some- thing like “Repent, and prepare to meet your maker” or “Kiss your rear end goodbye.” But no one asked my advice on the matter. A Day i n t he L i f e o f . . .