The Foreign Service Journal, April 2018

84 APRIL 2018 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA NEWS WorkYear: DidYou Know? NEWS BRIEF DEPARTMENT APPEALS 2014 MSI CASE One of the most important things AFSA does is ensure that excellence within the Foreign Service is recognized prominently, publicly and appropriately. When one of the foreign affairs agencies neglects their duty to do so, AFSA calls them out on it and, when necessary, takes action. That’s why, when the State Department decided in 2014 to only offer meritorious step increases to a por- tion of those recommended for promotion, AFSA took action. On Dec. 2, 2014, AFSA filed an implementation dispute on behalf of 270 of our members on this matter. As we told members via AFSANet in December 2017, the Foreign Service Grievance Board (FSGB) ruled in favor of AFSA. The FSGB ruled that the State Department had improperly denied Meritorious Service Increases to a cadre of FS members who were recommended for promotion by the 2014 Selection Boards but not ultimately promoted. The FSGB’s ruling directed the department to make retroactive payments of the 2014 MSIs, with interest, to these employees. Unfortunately, on Jan. 8, 2018, the State Department appealed the FSGB’s decision to the Foreign Service Labor Relations Board (FSLRB). The department also requested that the FSGB temporarily stay its order requiring the department to retroactively pay the MSIs, pending a decision from the FSLRB. AFSA responded to the department’s appeal on Feb. 2. The FSLRB will review the FSGB’s decision and the parties’ submissions to determine whether the FSGB’s decision is deficient. AFSA will continue to fight to ensure that the excellent work of our members is recognized, and we’ll keep you informed of the FSLRB’s decision. n NEWS BRIEF ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE POLICY AFSA has been working with the department to clarify the administrative leave policy for Foreign Service members preparing to leave for tours at Priority Staffing Posts. A number of members brought to our attention the fact that, according to the 2018 Iraq Service Rec- ognition Package, the incentive policy of pro- viding 20 administrative leave days to those deploying to Iraq is currently “under review.” On Feb. 8, the Bureau of Human Resources confirmed that it had not yet received guid- ance from the Office of Personnel Manage- ment regarding any changes to the administra- tive leave policy. We were informed that PSP administrative leave will not be affected during this cycle because HR would be allowed 270 days to submit a new plan after OPM informs them of any changes to the leave policy. AFSA will continue to monitor the situation for new developments. n There are 52 weeks in the year and 40 working hours each week. This should add up to 2,080 hours. But actu- ally, there are 2,087 hours in a federal government work year. Why is this? The figure was changed from 2,080 hours in 1986, and like most changes of this nature, it saved money. However, it is also a logical change. The 2,080-hour method for computing hourly pay was based on a 260-day work year, even though some years con- tain 261 or 262 work days. Because 26 bi-weekly pay periods cover only 364 days in a calendar year, the end of the payroll year gradually moves away from the end of the calendar year with just 2,080 hours per year. Congress chose instead to use 2,087 work hours per year as the divisor to determine hourly rates. This method does not reflect the actual number of work hours in a calendar year but is more precise than the old method because it repre- sents the average number of work hours over a 28-year perpetual calendar cycle— the time it takes for the calendar to repeat itself. n