Consular Agent's 2003 Evaluations and Step

UNCLAS MADRID 003667 SIPDIS CA/EX for Leo Wollemberg and Karin King EUR/EX/HR for Vivian Harvey E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CMGT AMGT APER SUBJECT: Consular Agent's 2003 Evaluations and Step Increases ¶1. Post recently realized that, due to an internal processing error, our consular agents' evaluations in the year 2003 were not properly submitted and, consequently, the employees did not receive the step increase they should have earned that year. ¶2. Our files show that in the year 2003 only one consular agent's evaluation was properly completed while all the other five were prepared and signed by the Counselor for Consular Affairs but were never processed. All of the agents did perform at the satisfactory or better level that year. ¶3. We were unaware of the situation until recently because the Consular Agents do not have access to Intranet and have difficulty accessing their pay records. Our consular agents' pay records are also inaccessible to Madrid HR and CONS. ¶4. We have now completed all six 2003 evaluations and will be sending the originals and faxing copies to CA requesting that concurrence be granted to our recommendation to give the consular agents the appropriate retroactive step increases. ARGYROS