The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2016

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JULY-AUGUST 2016 33 Treat the Problem, Not the Symptoms The Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review says that the federal government takes “work-life balance seriously and will continue to support our employees as they balance their commitment to service with personal wellness and family life. Work-life balance is critical to retaining the best talent.” It is time for senior management to not only say these words but to take substantive action. The central argument presented in this article and reflected in the preceding recommendations is to treat the source problem— the absence of a policy that ensures tandems remain together— with a viable and lasting solution rather than continuing to write policies that treat the symptoms. Discussions about alternative employment options such as LWOP or EPAP—of which the former is not even employment and the latter is no longer an option—in lieu of tandemmem- bers actually serving as the officers and specialists that they are, only further shelves the discussion about the source problem. With some shared effort, creative thinking and structural policy changes, we believe all Foreign Service departments and agencies are capable of adopting the following position: The [Agency Name] will ensure that tandem couples are assigned to the same post should they desire to remain together, so long as their assignment does not supplant otherwise applicable regulations and practices (e.g., anti-nepotism and nondiscrimina- tion provisions, medical clearance restrictions, security consider- ations or post unaccompanied status). n The central argument presented in this article is to treat the source problem— the absence of a policy that ensures tandems remain together—with a viable and lasting solution rather than continuing to write policies that treat the symptoms.