The Foreign Service Journal, March 2009

60 F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L / MA R CH 2 0 0 9 A F S A N E W S C O N S T I T U E N C Y S U M M A R I E S AFSA Annual Report 2008 T he AFSAUSAIDoffice staff was very busy workingonmembers’ behalf this past year. Although it is impossible to list all activi- ties and accomplishments in detail in the space of this short article, highlights are detailedbelow. Our activities can be classified broadly as those dealing with general work conditions and ben- efits, lobbying Congress and the new adminis- tration, andproviding individual assistance toour members. In the first category, AFSA worked with USAID management to expand or establish benefits. We were pleased that the Student Loan Reimbursement Programwas rein- stituted by the agency and that many of our FSOs signed up for it. We also insisted that entry-level officers receivemore realistic, high- er salaries, which can result in an increase of as much as $20,000. Inanother success, those interviewing forUSAIDpositions arenow reimbursed for their expenses while in Washington, thus making it more affordable for them to apply for these jobs. Weworked alongsideAFSAheadquarters staff tourgeCongress to provide our employees with equitable benefits such as overseas pay parity, which Senior Foreign Service officers already receive. Although we were able tomove the issue farther than at any time, unfortunately we were not successful. But the work will not go to waste; thenewadministrationhas strong support for correcting this problem. Our meetings with the Obama transition team provid- ed a good vehicle for informing themof this andmany other issues that will ultimately improve working conditions for our members and the agency as a whole. Another little-known fact is that we enjoy close working rela- tionshipswith think-tanks andnongovernmen- tal organizations that influence the implemen- tationofU.S. development policies. These “other players” lobby the government on issues that ulti- mately affect the working conditions of our employees. We make sure they have our views and interests in mind. The most important part of AFSA’s work at USAID is our direct service to members. The AFSAUSAIDstaff informed, advised, counseled and intervenedwithHumanResources onamul- titude ofmatters related toFS careers. In several cases, wewere suc- cessful inpreventing employees’ unfair separation fromthe agency. Inother instances,wehelpedemployees improve their performances through advice and counseling. AFSA also helped in many other areas, such as retroactive post differential and medical evacuation benefits; assignments; abusive supervisors; payroll issues; security investigations; and travel benefits. We negotiated favorable agree- ments for sevengrievances, andwere able toavoidmanyotherpoten- tial grievances by negotiating informally with the agency. In 2009, we will try to achieve the goals that have eluded us so far. Most important will be the pay equity issue. We would also like to see USAIDFSOs receive the same benefits as State employ- ees, suchas theDifficult toStaff IncentiveDifferential, per diemdur- ingWashington-based training andbetter financial support for the expenses incurred by new FSOs. As always, our office is open to provide individual assistance to our members and we encourage you to stop by, call us or send us an e-mail. We are here to serve you. —Francisco Zamora, USAID VP USAID: Highlights of a Busy Year The AFSA USAID staff informed, advised, counseled and intervened with Human Resources on a multitude of matters related to FSO careers. AFSA USAID VP Francisco Zamora (left) and USAID Rep Michael Henning at the AFSA Memorial Plaque Ceremony, May 2. USAID FSO John Michael Granville, who was killed in Khartoum, was hon- ored at the ceremony. MIKKELA THOMPSON