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UN Issued Staff Downsizing Draft, While WIPO's Gurry Doles Out $2000 Bonuses  in Geneva

By Matthew Russell Lee, Downsize exclusive

UNITED NATIONS, May 10 – With UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres once again out of town, after a brief return for a Lusophone garden party his UN Security hindered Inner City Press from covering, now Guterres' team is circulating an Administrative Instruction about staff downsizing. Inner City Press has obtained the draft and put it exclusively online on Patreon, here. On May 10 Inner City Press asked Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric about it for the second time - and about the incongruity of the UN World Intellectual Property Organization's Francis Gurry simultaneously giving $2,000 bonuses to nearly all WIPO staff. (Gurry has also retaliated against whistleblowers, and helped on North Korea's cyanide patents.) From the May 10 UN transcript: Inner City Press: a number of States have complained that, at WIPO, Mr. Gurry has given a $2,000 bonus to virtually all employees, which I'm sure is a nice thing, but I wanted… I'd asked you a couple of days ago about this plan to downsize here at Headquarters, including six months… a leave without pay for some if they don't find another post.  So, how… how do you square the two?  And does the Secretary-General think it was a good move by WIPO…

Spokesman:  They're two… two… two…

Inner City Press: …to pay $2,000…

Spokesman:  …two separate things.  I think the document you refer to was a draft that was circulated within… with the Staff Council Coordination Committee.  It is not finalized.  It is not pegged to any specific downsizing.  It is just to lay out… to lay out policy.  But, as I said, it's a complete draft, and it was not circulated by Ms. Beagle.

On your second question, I think the… we've been very clear that WIPO did not consult the Secretary-General, or did not inform the Secretary-General.  He was not aware of this.  They have no need to consult him because, in fact, the Secretary-General has no authority over WIPO, which is… has its own… has its own governing body that sits in Geneva."  Here are three sample paragraphs from the draft Administrative Instruction that Dujarric says is NOT from Jan Beagle:

“4.12 Staff in the General Service and related categories and National Officers  in posts subject to local recruitment shall be retained on suitable positions available within their entity at their duty station only, as per staff rule 9.6 (f). 

4.13 Staff in the Field Service and Professional or higher categories or internationally recruited staff in the General service and related categories will  be retained on available suitable positions within their entity (both within and outside their current duty station).

4.14  When a suitable position is found which is not immediately available but expected to become available within six months, for example as a result of a retirement or resumed funding, staff members may be assigned against temporary funding (when available in the entity) or placed on special leave without pay for that period with the agreement of staff members, with the understanding that they will subsequently be assigned to the position.”

  Leave without pay. This comes as Guterres is separately proposing to move hundreds of UN jobs out of New York to Mexico City, Budapest and Nairobi, which Inner City Press is also exclusively covering here. There are references to a Ban Ki-moon “Secretary General's Bulletin” of 2009 as a basis for the draft Administrative Instruction on downsizing. This seems like a leap. This too: while the draft refers to integrity, the Guardian has reported that Beagle while at UNAIDS, along with Luiz Loures, was subject to a detailed complaint of harassment from Sima Newell, here. On May 8, after exclusively publishing the above, Inner City Press asked Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric, UN transcript here: Inner City Press: Can I ask you about downsizing?  There's an administrative instruction put out by Jan Beagle.  Inner City Press has obtained and published it, and it seems to be saying that people will be put on six months' special leave without pay.  It seems to be a major initiative by the Guterres Administration to reduce the staff size.  And I guess I wanted to know, since it's… at least as I've obtained it, it's called a draft.

Spokesman:  I… you've…

Inner City Press:  What's the plan?

Spokesman:  You've obtained it.  I have not.  So, let me obtain it, read it, and respond.

Inner City Press: And I'm sure you've seen The Guardian article about Jan Beagle having been herself subject to harassment complaint at UNAIDS (Joint United Nations Programme against HIV/AIDS) before she was promoted by Guterres.  I've seen that you're quoted that she was vetted.  Does that mean that, despite other now second-guess… second-guessing or second runs at investigations at UNAIDS that was somehow a more…

Spokesman:  First of all, Ms. Beagle's work as Under-Secretary-General for Management is extremely appreciated by the Secretary-General.  She's doing a very difficult job and a very good job.  She was fully vetted when she was hired.  She's done a great job at UNAIDS and has been recognized as a leader in transforming organizations and ensuring that organizations are more inclusive and more representative.  I'm not aware of any plan to re-open the investigation that you refer to, and I will leave it at that." We'll have more on this. Watch this site.

***

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