ANNEX X - DELEGATION STAFF UNDER ATTACK THE EU MUST CONTINUE TO ATTRACT HIGHLY QUALIFIED, SKILLED & DEDICATED STAFF PROPOSED CUTS TO ANNEX X; THE EU WILL BE OFFERING WORSE CONDITIONS THAN MULTILATERALS/ MEMBER STATES/COOPERATION AGENCIES STOP THE GROUNDLESS ATTACK ON ANNEX X The EEAS/EP claims 24 days of annual leave is enough –Georgetown, Delhi, Luanda are on a par with Brussels ? Wave goodbye to your work/life balance. Under the special provisions of Annex X expats serving in Delegations are entitled to greater annual leave, currently 42 days per annum. Anyone who has worked in a Delegation, no matter how “comfortable” it is perceived to be, is confronted daily by difficult and unusual situations which make individual/family life much more complex. COMM expat staff in DEL have only 2 days of travelling time yet journeys may take up to 5 days for a return trip to Europe, to their country of origin. Holidays in the EU are often consumed by endless bureaucratic and legal tasks which cannot be dealt with effectively at a distance - how do you renew your GB passport in Papua New Guinea, your Greek passport in Paraguay, your driving license from Namibia? … Reducing leave to 24 days – THE SAME AS IN THE EU – is ignoring the reality of Delegations - it is absurd to claim that working “outside the EU” is the same as within the EU. Proposed drastic cuts to Annual Leave to 24 days will be untenable for expatriate staff, especially those with families, where time for family unification, contact with relatives and friends, not to mention simple administrative issues in the EU and elsewhere, are all vital to maintain a healthy work/social life balance and to attract suitably qualified staff. MEMBER STATES / EEAS CRITICISE COMM STAFF REGULATIONS AS BEING TOO GENEROUS – but where are they? COMM is EVERYWHERE Unsurprisingly, Member State Diplomats have tended to be posted to a limited number of countries in the start-up phase of the EEAS. COMMISSION staff are not picky – they are based in over 140 countries from the hardship countries & fragile states to those where life is considered to be less dangerous and difficult yet a constant challenge - COMM staff are far from home, in the interest of the service. Medical attention can be a nightmare, the threat of natural disasters ever-present, security & safety a major concern, schools inadequate.. YET COMMISSION staff continue to do their job professionally and to contribute directly to the EU vision – creating a safer, prosperous future – why are they being targeted randomly for the brunt of the cuts? The EEAS/EP claims Delegation staff is out of the office too often! Yes, indeed - in the jungle, in a remote, mountain village…… COMM colleagues based in Delegations are obliged to carry out monitoring missions in the field, to undertake often hazardous journeys in order to get to where a project is being undertaken. Their jobs involve regular travel outside the capital – they are not politicians based almost permanently in the capital but operational staff - committed to their jobs and living in conditions which cannot be considered as equal to those of staff members living and working in the EU. How many EEAS members would undertake the difficult missions that COMM staff undertakes frequently without escorts/VIP treatment and the like? COMM staff are exposed to all types of risks.. STOP THE GROUNDLESS ATTACK ON ANNEX X !!! OUTSIDE THE EU STAFF COMMITTEE CLP HU
Posted on: Mon, 24 Jun 2013 18:16:37 +0000
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