The Foreign Service Journal, December 2005

2 AFSA NEWS • DECEMBER 2005 AFSA NEWS BRIEFS Life in the Foreign Service n BY BRIAN AGGELER, FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER AFSA Meets with Entry-Level Employees in Africa Posts AFSA State VP Steve Kashkett participated in the Africa-region entry-level conference that took place in Addis Ababa fromOct. 12-14. This event, which brought together more than 70 entry-level Foreign Service employees from virtually every post in AF— and was organized by the employees themselves —provided an opportunity for a candid exchange of views on the key concerns and problems facing entry-level employees in that region. Kashkett participated in several panel discussions covering personnel issues and career development in today's Foreign Service. He particularly enjoyed and found useful his private conversations with nearly 50 of the participants on the margins of the conference. Staff: Executive Director Susan Reardon: reardon@afsa.org Business Department Controller Steven Tipton: tipton@afsa.org Accounting Assistant Jon Reed: reed@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 Adviser Douglas Broome: dbroome@usaid.gov USAID Office Manager Asgeir Sigfusson: asigfusson@usaid.gov Grievance Attorneys Neera Parikh: parikhna@state.gov an d Charles Garten gartenc@state.gov Office Manager Christine Warren: warrenc@state.gov Member Services Director Janet Hedrick: hedrick@afsa.org Representative Cory Nishi: nishi@afsa.org Web-site & Database Associate Meijing Shan: shan@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 Retiree Recruitment Coordinator Norma Reyes: reyes@afsa.org Elderhostel Coordinator Janice Bay: bay@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: holmes@afsa.org STATE VP: kashkettsb@state.gov RETIREE VP: 42reuwash@earthlink.net USAID VP: wcarter@usaid.gov FCS VP: donald.businger@mail.doc.gov FAS VP: laura.scandurra@fas.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: J. Anthony Holmes STATE VICE PRESIDENT: Steven Kashkett USAID VICE PRESIDENT: Bill Carter FCS VICE PRESIDENT: Donald Businger FAS VICE PRESIDENT: Laura Scandurra RETIREE VICE PRESIDENT: David Reuther SECRETARY: Tex Harris TREASURER: Andrew Winter STATE REPRESENTATIVES: Bradford Bell, Brian Cook, Hugh Neighbour, Alan Misenheimer, Joyce Namde, James Roseli and Andrew Young USAID REPRESENTATIVE: Francisco Zamora FCS REPRESENTATIVE: William Center FAS REPRESENTATIVE: Mike Conlon IBB REPRESENTATIVE: Sheldon Daitch RETIREE REPRESENTATIVES: Leonard J. Baldyga, Roger Dankert, Larry Lesser and Gilbert Sheinbaum AFSA Meets with USAID Administrator On Oct. 31, AFSA President Tony Holmes met with USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios. The meeting was cordial and frank and covered a wide range of topics. Amb. Holmes highlighted AFSA’s highest-priority issue: overseas compara- bility pay. He also expressed AFSA’s bafflement at USAID’s refusal to abide by the decisions of the Foreign Service Grievance Board and resolve the cases involving the unfair selection out of two employees. Other topics discussed at the meeting included USAID’s extensive use of Foreign Service Limited appointments and using program resources as opposed to the operating expenses budget. AFSA pointed out that these two separate FS systems would inevitable start bumping up against each other and cause the agency problems. Administrator Natsios said that he was preoccupied at the moment with the $60 million shortfall in the large operating expense budget, but would do all he could to avoid a RIF and mitigate, to the extent possible, rollbacks in employee benefits such as train- ing, student loan repayment and spousal language training. Continued on page 4 “Wallace, I understand your youthful appetite for reckless speculation, but maintain it’s safer if this memo concludes that whatever will be may be.”