The Foreign Service Journal, December 2021

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2021 41 go on authorized departure as a result of the pandemic. In this she worked not only with AFSA but also with State’s Bureau of Medical Services. In the context of a heavy VIP visitor load neces- sitating extensive overtime, Ms. Doom also played a key role, along with fellow post rep Daniel Devries, in convincing mission leadership to honor overtime payment regulations; failure to honor these regulations had resulted in low morale and resent- ment among at least 60 affected members. “I managed several complex situations,” Doom says. “One that was particularly challenging was assisting a post where officers had received guidance from leadership that if they chose to go on COVID-19 authorized departure, they would face career repercussions. Several officers at that post were understandably concerned for both their and their family’s health, as well as their own careers. Working with AFSA headquarters in Washington to address this situation, we were able to convince leadership at that post to retract and shift their position, and several families then went on AD.” Ms. Doom hosted periodic meetings for AFSA membership at posts where she was the rep. She has been able to convince employees of the benefits of membership, increasing enrollment in AFSA by five to 10 persons per year. Charlee Doom began her diplomatic career with USAID a decade ago. She has served in Kenya, Somalia and Jordan. In August, she began a tour in Timor-Leste. Before joining USAID, she worked at Bunge Global Agribusiness, BASF, The Chemi- cal Company and Monsanto, where she specialized in global commodity trade and global strategic marketing for agricultural chemicals and non-GMO seed traits. Ms. Doom completed her bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics at the University of Kentucky and an MBA at the Uni- versity of Western Australia while serving as a Rotary Ambassa- dorial Scholar. She is currently completing an executive certifi- cate in economic development at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She speaks Kiswahili and is studying Tetum, an official language in Timor-Leste. AFSA Post Representative of the Year Randy Chester Expanding Employee Rights at U.S. Mission Pakistan E ven before joining USAID, Randy Chester was a longtime union member. In college, he joined the Teamsters and his local grad school union. When he joined USAID in 2004, he was excited to be able to join AFSA soon after his swearing- in as a Foreign Service officer. He became AFSA’s post represen- tative in Islamabad in 2018. “Unions have been and continue to be an important force in promoting labor rights, a supportive work environment condu- cive to personal and professional growth, and the space to advo- cate for and engage in constructive dissent with management,” he says. “These past 18 months under COVID-19 restrictions further strengthened my belief in the need for continued strong union representation.” Randy Chester served as a valued mentor, adviser, bridge to management and spokesman for 40 AFSAmembers in Islamabad, one of the most challenging posts in the Foreign Service. Because there was no AFSA rep for the State Department in Islamabad, he expanded his volunteer duties to include State employees serving there. “During my two years as AFSA rep, I learned that often, just being heard is what FSOs need,” he says. “While advocacy was important, especially in the early days of the global authorized departure due to the pandemic, being a sounding board for concerns and com- plaints helped staff through a difficult time.” The AFSA USAID VP’s office looked to Ms. Doom as its go-to rep when her counterparts at other missions sought peer advice or counseling, or needed a model of how to be successful as an AFSA rep. Randy Chester.