The Foreign Service Journal, September 2016

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2016 73 AFSA NEWS Breathing Life into the AFSA Post Rep Program POST REPRESENTAT I VE OF THE YEAR AWARD KARN CARLSON Karn “KC” Carlson assumed his duties as the AFSA post representative at U.S. Consulate General Nuevo Laredo in February 2015. He engaged post management on a variety of issues affect- ing mission staff, including overtime policies and travel issues. In particular, he was extremely proactive and helpful in providing member input from several posts in Mexico on the changes to the danger pay policies intro- duced by the Department of State in September 2015. Mr. Carlson’s thoughtful and articulate observations on the proposed danger pay changes were among the strongest contributions AFSA received from post reps at affected posts, and this input was important in discussions with State Department management. He compiled definitions of terrorism in the U.S. Code and linked them to specific incidents in Nuevo Laredo; he outlined in quantitative terms how the changes would affect the income not only of Foreign Service employees, but also of eligible family members; and he made a compelling argu- ment as to why AFSA should advocate for a change to the entry-level officer (ELO) bid- ding equity program. Mr. Carlson also drafts a periodic AFSA column for the CLO newsletter at post, a duty he shares with other post representatives in Mexico. This is an excellent demonstration of how post reps can best use their posi- tion to promote the “AFSA brand.” Not only did he get the column going; he is also providing the CLO with a regular supply of articles, to keep our members informed even after he departs post. Recognizing the need for his replacement to be selected quickly and according to the correct procedure, Mr. Carl- son has taken steps to pub- licize the role and method of selection. Mr. Carlson is exactly what AFSA hopes for in a post rep—someone who is active, in touch not only with his fellow AFSA members, but also with post manage- ment and AFSA HQ and doing his best to share infor- mation and improve working conditions for his colleagues. Although unable to attend the awards ceremony, he sent this message: “I want to express my gratitude to AFSA for their tenacity and perseverance in protecting our rights and benefits. In spite of the non-stop drive to reduce expenses, we need to continually work to take care of our most important resource—our people.” n Karn “KC” Carlson, Post Representative of the Year COURTESYOFKARNCARLSON AFSA EXEMPLARY PERFORMANCE AWARDS Volunteer to be an AFSA Post Representative Many of AFSA’s Post Rep- resentatives have relocated during the summer transfer season, thus some posts are temporarily without an AFSA rep. The role of a post rep is crucial due to the issues now confronting the Foreign Service. All posts without an AFSA rep should hold elections as soon as possible, and smaller posts should designate a volunteer. To determine if there is a vacancy at your post, visit the post rep page on the AFSA website: www.afsa.org/ post-rep-listing. For an AFSA post rep, there are four important areas of responsibility involved: (1) Representing collective and individual interests of Foreign Service Personnel at post;(2) Transmitting to colleagues AFSA’s advisories on all devel- opments affecting their career opportunities and conditions of employment; (3) Forward- ing to AFSA any proposals, complaints or criticisms origi- nating with the AFSAmem- bers at post and (4) Expand- ing AFSA’s membership. The only employees excluded from serving as official AFSA Reps are management officials and/or confidential employees. Posts preparing to hold elections may visit the AFSA website, www.afsa.org/ electing-post-rep to review the guidelines for holding elections. Be sure to advise AFSAWashington when a Post Rep is elected so that he or she can be properly certi- fied. For further information contact the Member Services Department at member@ afsa.org. n