The Foreign Service Journal, April 2004

2 AFSA NEWS • APRIL 2004 AFSA NEWS BRIEFS Welcome to AFSA’s New FAS VP AFSA is pleased to report that Laura Scandurra joined the AFSA Governing Board as AFSA Vice President for the Foreign Agricultural Service in February. She cur- rently works in the Multilateral Trade Negotiations Division of FAS, and has served overseas in The Hague and Tokyo. She’s a diplomat and an athlete, participat- ing in triathlons, rowing, cycling and speed skating. Life in the Foreign Service BY BRIAN AGGELER, FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER AFSA MEETS WITH OPM DIRECTOR An AFSA delegation met with Office of Personnel Management Director Kay Coles James on Jan. 15 to discuss the related issues of Senior Foreign Service pay and locality (or over- seas comparability) pay for ranks FS-1 and below. AFSA pressed OPM to authorize travel overtime for specialists and to implement the regulations giving former “PITs” (employees on part-time, intermittent or temporary appointments) the option to buy back retirement coverage. On the new requirement for all Senior Executive Service (and thus SFS) salaries to be based on a pay-for-performance system, the OPM director could not say much about specifics of the new system. She and her colleagues did say, however, that the Foreign Service, with its existing evaluations and rank-ordering, was well ahead of the rest of the U.S. government in putting such a system into place. Although PIT buy-backs were authorized in legislation in September 2002 (go to www.aafsw.org/state/state_ resources.htm for more information), OPM remains opposed to implementing the legislation for reasons of precedent and retroactivity. The OPM representatives told AFSA that they would look for alternative ways to move forward. AFSA will continue to press for a provision in the FY 2005 state authoriza- tion bill that includes a deadline for implementing the legislation. On travel overtime for specialists, particularly Diplomatic Security agents, the OPM officials admitted that the “Strategic Compensation Initiative” that was supposed to deal with this issue remained moribund. They agreed to re-engage on the issue to work out an agreement. Briefs • Continued on page 6 GOSH, HE’S REALLY MASTERED THAT CORE PRECEPT IN “PERSUASION AND NEGOTIATION.” Staff: Executive Director Susan Reardon: reardon@afsa.org Business Department Controller Kalpna Srimal: srimal@afsa.org Accounting Assistant Steven Tipton: tipton@afsa.org Labor Management General Counsel Sharon Papp: papps@state.gov Labor Management Attorney Zlatana Badrich: badrichz@state.gov Labor Management Specialist James Yorke: yorkej@state.gov USAID Senior Labor Management Advisor Douglas Broome: dbroome@usaid.gov USAID Office Manager Asgeir Sigfusson: asigfusson@usaid.gov Grievance Attorneys Harry Wilkinson: wilkinsonhg@state.gov, an d Charles Henderson: hendersonch@state.gov Office Manager Christine Warren: warrenc@state.gov Law Clerk Marques Peterson: petersonmo@state.gov Member Services Director Janet Hedrick: hedrick@afsa.org Representative Lindsay Peyton: peyton@afsa.org Administrative Assistant Ana Lopez: lopez@afsa.org Outreach Programs Retiree Liaison Bonnie Brown: brown@afsa.org Director of Communications Thomas Switzer: switzer@afsa.org Congressional Affairs Director Ken Nakamura: nakamura@afsa.org Corporate Relations/Executive Assistant Austin Tracy: tracy@afsa.org Scholarship Director Lori Dec: dec@afsa.org Professional Issues Coordinator Barbara Berger: berger@afsa.org AFSA HEADQUARTERS: (202) 338-4045; Fax: (202) 338-6820 STATE DEPARTMENT AFSA OFFICE: (202) 647-8160; Fax: (202) 647-0265 USAID AFSA OFFICE: (202) 712-1941; Fax: (202) 216-3710 FCS AFSA OFFICE: (202) 482-9088; Fax: (202) 482-9087 AFSA WEB SITE: www.afsa.org AFSA E-MAIL: afsa@afsa.org AFSA NEWS: afsanews@afsa.org FSJ: journal@afsa.org PRESIDENT: limbert@afsa.org STATE VP: cranelk@state.gov RETIREE VP: jones@afsa.org USAID VP : wcarter@usaid.gov FCS VP: charles.ford@mail.doc.gov FAS VP: Laura.Scandurra@usda.gov AFSA News Editor Shawn Dorman : dorman@afsa.org (202) 338-4045 x 503; Fax: (202) 338-8244 On the Web : www.afsa.org/news How to Contact Us: Governing Board: PRESIDENT: John W. Limbert STATE VICE PRESIDENT: Louise K. Crane USAID VICE PRESIDENT: Bill Carter FCS VICE PRESIDENT: Charles A. Ford FAS VICE PRESIDENT: Laura Scandurra RETIREE VICE PRESIDENT: George F. Jones SECRETARY: F.A. “Tex” Harris TREASURER: Danny Hall STATE REPRESENTATIVES: Pamela Bates, Cynthia G. Efird, Scot L. Folensbee, Raymond D. Maxwell, John C. Sullivan, Jim Wagner USAID REPRESENTATIVE: Thomas Olson FCS REPRESENTATIVE: William Crawford RETIREE REPRESENTATIVES: Gilbert Sheinbaum, David E. Reuther, Theodore S. Wilkinson, III, Stanley A. Zuckerman IBB REPRESENTATIVE: Alex Belida FAS REPRESENTATIVE: Michael Conlon