UNGA FIFTH COMMITTEE: GRIDLOCK ON UN COMMON SYSTEM

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001006

SIPDIS

IO/MPR GEORGE ABRAHAMS
IO/MPR LYNETTE PODOLSKY
IO/MPR BRIAN HACKETT
IO/MPR LISA SPRATT

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: AORC ACABQ UN UNGA UNGA KUNR
SUBJECT: UNGA FIFTH COMMITTEE: GRIDLOCK ON UN COMMON SYSTEM

REF: USUN1000


1. (U) This is an action request. See paragraphs 7, 11, and

13.


2. (U) SUMMARY: During the last few weeks, the Fifth
Committee of the UN General Assembly has been meeting
informally to discuss the UN Common System of salaries and
benefits. The Committee has been unable to adopt a resolution
on this agenda item because of continuing disagreements
between the G-77 and western countries regarding a proposed
end-of-service grant for fixed-term staff. A similar
standstill is likely to occur on the related issue of
continuing contracts, to be addressed in the context of the
human resources management agenda item tentatively scheduled
to be introduced next week. END SUMMARY.

UN COMMON SYSTEM
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3. (U) The UN Common System of salaries and benefits is
addressed by the General Assembly in the context of its
consideration of the annual report of the International Civil
Service Commission (ICSC). In its report of 2009 (A-64-30),
the ICSC recommended the introduction of an end-of-service
severance payment to fixed-term staff members who have served
for at least ten years but whose contracts are not renewed.


4. (SBU) Western delegations, which have been coordinating
closely on human resources issues, oppose the introduction of
the proposed end-of-service severance payment because they do
not believe that the UN has any legal obligations to support
a staff member after the completion of a contract. Western
delegations have therefore introduced language to either
reject the proposal outright (in the case of Japan, Mexico,
and the U.S.) or to defer decision until a later date (in the
case of the EU and CANZ). Russia and the G-77 support
approval of the proposed benefit. As a result discussion in
the Committee on the Common System has stalled.


5. (U) Because of the gridlock on the end-of-service grant,
the Committee has not had adequate opportunity to consider
other elements of the ICSC report, including the use of
termination indemnities. The termination indemnity is
intended to compensate staff members for the loss of
expectation of employment. However, the amount of
compensation provided to staff members who have served more
than five years is based solely on their length of service as
opposed to the un-served remainder of their terms.


6. (SBU) Staff union representatives confirmed to USUN that
it was not uncommon for long-serving staff members to be
terminated just before their contracts expired as a ploy to
permit them to claim a termination indemnity of up to twelve
months of pay. Upon request by the U.S. delegation, the ICSC
secretariat provided data indicating that, since 2005, there
were twenty-nine cases in the UN Secretariat in which staff
members were terminated within the last three months of their
contracts. Of these, twenty-five were terminated within
thirty days of their contract expiration.


7. (SBU) ACTION REQUEST: Unless we hear otherwise, USUN
intends to continue opposing the end-of-service grant. If the
current impasse continues, USUN proposes to agree to a
deferral of this agenda item. In regards to the termination
indemnity, USUN requests Department views on the option of
changing the basis for granting indemnity payments to staff
members terminated after five years of service from length of
service to un-served remainders of terms.

LOOKING AHEAD: HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
--------------


8. (U) Last year, the General Assembly passed resolution
63/250 on Human Resources Management which simplified the
existing web of contractual arrangements into a streamlined
tripartite framework of temporary contracts, fixed-term
contracts, and continuing (open-ended) contracts. However,
the Fifth Committee could not reach consensus on the criteria
for awarding continuing appointments and deferred decision on
the criteria for converting staff from fixed-term
appointments to continuing appointments until the current
(sixty-fourth) session. All other elements of the framework
went into effect on 1 July 2009.


9. (U) Introduction of the Human Resources Management agenda
item continues to be delayed because the Fifth Committee has
not yet received the related report of the Advisory Committee
on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ).



10. (SBU) In the past, the USG, along with the Government of
Japan and others, have supported a limit to the number of
conversions from fixed-term contracts to continuing
contracts. USUN has already begun preliminary coordination
with Western delegations such as Japan, CANZ, the EU, and
Mexico regarding Human Resources Management. There is
widespread agreement that the proposal put forth by the
Secretary-General is not sufficiently robust and could result
in automatic conversion of staff members into continuing
appointments after five years of service. As a result, these
Western delegations have indicated willingness to consider a
temporary limit at least until after the Secretariat
completes its review of performance appraisal, which is
scheduled to be completed next year and its results presented
to the General Assembly during the sixty-fifth session. The
G-77 is expected both to voice its support for the
Secretary-General's proposal as well as to push for its
implementation by 1 January 2010.


11. (SBU) ACTION REQUEST: Unless instructed otherwise, USUN
intends to push for deferral of the implementation of
continuing contracts until the Secretariat completes the
review of the staff performance appraisal system requested by
the General Assembly for next year.

ASHI
--------------


12. (U) One additional human resource-related issue scheduled
to be considered by the Fifth Committee this session is
financing the liabilities of the After Service Health
Insurance (ASHI) program. ASHI is currently scheduled to be
introduced in the Committee during the week of 9 November.
However, this issue is likely to be deferred until a later
session because the Fifth Committee is unlikely to have the
time to adequately address this technically-complex issue
given the number of other more pressing issues on the agenda.


13. (U) ACTION REQUEST: Unless instructed otherwise, USUN
intends to support deferral of this agenda item.
Rice