The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2005

post noted that “EFMs are not empowered to make decisions even though they may have much more experience and knowledge than their inexperienced first-tour junior-officer supervisor. There’s a very intelligent, experienced employee pool here that is underutilized.” And finally, one frustrated EFM says: “I will never apply to work as an EFM on a Family Member Appointment again. I was not treated as a person who could advance professionally but rather as a spouse who had been given the gift of a job that I should be happy to have, like social welfare.” Many EFMs express frustration at the identity they have inside the embassy community. The term “dependent” still has a negative con- notation, one that seems to strip away any prior professional experi- ence. Bernard Huon-Dumentat, an EFM in Lisbon who writes about issues of family member employ- ment, had this to say: “The depart- ment still views FMA jobs as oppor- tunities that the U.S. government has created to keep spouses happy. Therefore the attitude is that EFMs should be satisfied with whatever pit- tance they receive in salary and what- ever pitiful regard they receive for their real input to the organization. There is no long-term vision.” Another family member who has been watching the issue for years, Terri Lawler Smith, notes: “I have to tell you that over the last 20 years a lot of lip service has been given to all the positive changes that the State Department has made in EFM employment, but in reality, very few concrete changes have taken place since the old PIT days.” A view from an East European post was more optimistic: “I think working conditions and appreciation for EFMs have improved. An EFM working in an FMA position is not seen as being ‘just the dependent’ anymore but as a ‘real employee.’” And from a first-tour J U LY- A U G U S T 2 0 0 5 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 73 2400 Virginia Ave., N.W Washington, D.C., 20037 Tel: (202) 293-2000 E-mail: leasingoffice@columbiaplaza.net Office Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8:00 AM-5:30 PM Sat 10:00 AM-4:00 PM 24 Hour Front Desk Garage Parking Avaliable Controlled Access Potomac River Views Minutes to Fine Dining Newly Renovated Kitchens Directly across the street from Main State, minutes to Kennedy Center and Georgetown Beautiful and Spacious: Efficiencies, 1 bedroom and 2 bedrooms available for immediate occupancy Utilities Included Complimentary Voice Mail Courtyard Style Plaza Polished Hardwood Floors Private Balconies Huge Walk-in Closets Capital Living With Comfort and Convenience 24 Hour Fitness Center columbia plaza apartments Grand Opening: The Market at Columbia Plaza