LETTERS State (ISSN 0278-1859) (formerly the On consular work pushed into consular assignments. And Department of State Newsletter) is published by the just as teaching and nursing, highly U.S. Department of State to acquaint its employees, at challenging and important careers, have home and abroad, with oevelopments that may affect Washington operations or personnel. There are II monthly issues long been considered “women’s work” Dear Editor: (none in July). and thus been afforded less prestige than As part of the ongoing lawsuit Deadline for submitting material is in the first they deserve, so have consular jobs in the week of each month. Contributions (consisting of concerning sex discrimination in the For¬ Foreign Service become “women’s jobs.” general information, feature articles, poems, eign Service, the class of female Foreign We contend simply that female officers photographs, drawings) are welcome. Double-space, Service officers recently asked the court spelling out job titles, names of offices and should be provided with the same oppor¬ to hold the Secretary of State in contempt programs—acronyms are not acceptable. Send tunity as male officers to serve in all contributions (anonymous submissions will not be for violating court-ordered injunctions fields of work. published) to State magazine, PER/ER/SMG, SA-6, against discrimination against female of¬ Sincerely, Room 43.5, Washington, D.C. 20522-0602. Telephone: ficers in potential ratings, Superior Honor (70.3) 516-1667. Fax: (703) 516-1677. Contributions Elisabeth J. Lyons □ may also be dropped off in Room 3811 Main State. Awards and consular out-of-cone assign¬ Although intended for internal communication. ments. The plaintiffs contend that the State is available to the public through the Department’s ongoing discrimination A plug for periods Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government against women in these areas prevent Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. female officers from advancing to the Kuwait Editor Sanford (Whitey) Watzman upper ranks of the Foreign Service. Dear Editor: Deputy editor Barbara Quirk On June 20, the Washington Post ran “Hey! Where’s that Hyphen?” by Staff assistant Kim Banks □ a story about the plaintiff’s’ recent motion Gordon Jones (June issue) was a timely for contempt which stated that I said that article. Although presented in a humorous a consular job, in which women are more fashion, let’s hope this matter is taken often placed than men, is “mostly admin¬ seriously. istrative and considered less challenging” While we are trying to improve than political or economic jobs. As one of clarity in writing, particularly in all-caps the attorneys for the class, I would like to —(Continued on Page 57) make clear that I did not state, and do not believe, that consular jobs are less chal¬ lenging than political or economic jobs. 1 believe instead that consular jobs, and the officers who serve in those jobs, are critical to the functioning of the Foreign Service. Consular jobs are certainly as important and serious as any other job in the Foreign Service. Our concern in the lawsuit regarding the Department’s placement of women in Vice President Gore in the consular jobs at a much higher rate than Dean Acheson Auditorium. Story begins on Page 2. (White men is that women officers are being House photo by Cal lie Shell) stereotyped as more suited to consular work than to political or economic work. Just as women who wanted careers were in the past pushed into teaching or nursing, so are female officers being NO. 368 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE JUIY-AUGUST 1993 22 47 50 News Stories Feature Stories Departments and Features 2 Vice President Gore 6 Brussels weighs in big visits State, trades on management scale 50 Anapestic Assignments ideas with employees 22 Artists among the 23 Appointments 12 Columbia Plaza project “Alert Overseas Kids” is underway 54 “Ask Dr. Kemp” 32 A Defense offer 13 State fire warden that’s seen as too 60 Bureau Notes system is reorganized good to refuse 32 Education and Training 15 Japanese man is the “Foreign Service 15 Honors and Awards National of the Year” Photo Stories 12 News Highlights 19 Information management 44 Post of the Month: award for John Arriza Kolonia 84 Obituaries 20 Stanley Otto cops the 37 Personnel: Civil Service trade development award 49 Personnel: Foreign Service 23 Moose: management boss; Gati: intelligence chief 36 State-ing the Facts 24 White House announces 22 ambassadorial picks DEPARTMENT OPERATIONS from two high stools that had been set up hookup that broadcast the program live to Vice President, for them. 160 Foreign Service posts, allowing par¬ The exchanges between the Vice ticipation by those tuning in from Cairo, State employees President and the audience that sur¬ Lima and the Los Angeles Passport rounded him were substantive, though the Office, in addition to Lagos. trade suggestions question-and-answer format wasn’t in¬ A theme frequently sounded by the tended to allow for deep probing there Vice President was the need for a on ‘reinventing into suggestions that were made. Still, devolution of authority and responsibility judging from the spontaneous laughter and from the upper reaches of the bureaucracy government’ frequent applause, both Mr. Gore and the to the action officers down below. It had employees appeared to enjoy the ex¬ been only some weeks earlier in that Vice President Albert Gore brought changes and to derive guidance from auditorium where that same theme was his tour of federal agencies into the State them. For the employees, the guidance heralded by Mr. Christopher, who then Department on May 26, to solicit ideas came from being exposed to the thrust of followed it up with a reorganizational from employees on “reinventing govern¬ Mr. Gore’s thinking, and for the Vice directive that calls for abolishing many ment.” Entering the Dean Acheson Au¬ President it came when he heard directly deputy assistant secretary and Seventh ditorium with Secretary Christopher, he from the Foreign and Civil Service Floor job slots, to impart more clout to found all the seats taken and employees officers about their professional concerns. desk officers and those in similar lining the walls. He began his presentation In the audience were people from positions. from a comer of the stage (which was State, A.I.D., the Arms Control and “Do you feel there are too many almost wholly occupied by still more Disarmament Agency and at least one layers of management in the State Depart¬ employees seated in folding chairs), then person from U.S.I.A. (who prompted ment?” the Vice President bluntly asked moved with the Secretary to the front, laughter by being the only one of that at one point. One reply he got was from where they kicked off a “town meeting” agency to raise a hand). But another Sakae Hawley, the Los Angeles regional U.S.I.A. person checked in with a com¬ passport director. Speaking from there on The Vice President and the Secretary ment from Lagos, relayed to the au¬ the hookup, she said: “From micro- have an audience front and rear. ditorium via a U.S.I.A. “Worldnet” management, to the budget process alloca- tions ... and particularly the F.T.E. (staffing) allocations, there is overcentral¬ ization. I think it would be very helpful for the field managers to have a lot more delegated authority in making these deci¬ sions. I would like to hear your comments about that.” Another reply: “My name is Buddy Silverman. I’m a civil servant in the State Department, and this is my ninth federal agency. I think the reason there are so many layers of government is because of the process of ranking by position rather than by ranking in person. When you rank by position, you have to create layers to justify a grade, and if you are in a position where you have a high grade, you have to build an empire to maintain your grade.” To Ms. Hawley, Mr. Gore said: “I agree with you, and I think that within the federal Government there is a culture that Vice President Gore greets employees Right?” makes people deathly afraid that some¬ outside the auditorium, The Vice President asked: “Have body beneath them in the hierarchy is taking an average of seven months before you had that happen to you?” “Never!” going to make a mistake, and that the the post receives the equipment.” said Ms. Brand. mistake is going to reflect on the people To which Mr. Gore replied: “Well, This was followed by more laughter on up the hierarchy. And high-performing thank you for your example. If you want and applause. organizations in the private sector have to buy a personal computer, it has to be Brent Schaefer of A.I.D. commented: pushed more decision-making authority to reviewed by three bureaus in Washington, “Well, I think one thing we can’t do the people who are actually doing the with an average delay time of seven much about—maybe not even you in the work, with the certain knowledge that months? I mean, I must tell you that’s White House. 1 would be much in favor of there will be some mistakes, but with the better than what some Departments do. docking the Congress’ salaries if they philosophy that tells them mistakes are an (Laughter.) I was at one department a few don’t get our budgets passed by the end of opportunity to learn and to adjust and to weeks ago where a procurement order had September. You send up the budgets early grow from the experience.” to pass through 23 separate people before in the year and they spend six or seven To Mr.