AFSA NEWS 72 DECEMBER 2023 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA Governing Board Meeting, October 18, 2023 The board met in person at AFSA headquarters, with some members joining virtually via a hybrid system. The following action items were decided upon: Updates to the AFSA Employee Handbook The board agreed to increase AFSA’s parental leave to 12 weeks. The board also adopted clarifying language regarding the number of advance annual leave hours an employee may request. 2024 AFSA Dues Increase As per the AFSA bylaws, the board agreed to approve an across-the-board increase in AFSA member dues of 3.7 percent for 2024. 2023 Matilda Sinclaire Language Awards The board agreed to name 10 individuals as recipients of the 2023 Sinclaire Awards. n Outreach to Retired Members Recently elected AFSA President Tom Yazdgerdi continued the tradition of AFSA outreach to retired members by speaking to the Foreign Affairs Retirees of Northern Virginia in September. He updated the 70 attendees on AFSA activities and answered their questions. In October, President Yazdgerdi presented a “View from Washington” webinar to retirees worldwide. He travels to Florida in January to speak to the Foreign Service Retirees Association of Florida at their annual general meeting in Sarasota. As 2024 progresses, he plans to visit other Foreign Service retiree groups around the nation. You can view a list of the retiree groups in the AFSA Directory of Retired Members and online at https://afsa.org/ retiree-associations. If there is no group in your area and you are interested in starting one, AFSA can help locate retirees in your area to get the message out. Please contact AFSA Director of Programs and Member Engagement Christine Miele at miele@afsa.org. n
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