UN
Confirms
Layoff Letters
Despite Libya
Plan, Nothing
on Aramark
Layoffs
By
Matthew
Russell Lee, Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 2,
updated -- The
UN has
confirmed to
Inner City
Press that it
has sent
layoff notices
(or "your post
does not
exist"
letters, in UN-ese)
to Department
of Safety and
Security staff
members. In this
month of
December, can
the jobs be
saved?
Earlier today,
after
receiving
numerous complaints,
Inner City
Press made
several
inquiries and
published a
story about
the layoffs,
or ten
officers who
received
letters, and
asked why they
couldn't for
example be
placed in the
new security
mission in
Libya. [See
below.]
After publishing
that exclusive
first story,
at the day's
noon briefing,
Inner City
Press put the
question to
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesperson
Martin Nesirky.
He said his
office was
already
looking into
it. And later,
this arrived,
which we
publish in
full:
Subject:
Your
question on UN
Security
personnel
From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do
Not Reply [at]
un.org
Date: Mon, Dec
2, 2013 at
1:19 PM
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
Regarding
your
question at
noon about
security
posts, the
Spokesperson
has the
following to
say:
The
security
posts in
question are
posts that
were
temporarily
created to
support the
Capital Master
Plan (CMP).
The
“associated
costs” for
the CMP, which
is the funding
source for
these
temporary
posts, ends
on 31 December
2013.
However,
over
the last 18
months, the
Organization
has put a
great deal of
effort into
saving as many
jobs as
possible for
these affected
staff
members. This
has included
finding posts
within the
Security and
Safety Service
at the UN
Headquarters,
as well as
other UN
security
services
globally,
General
Service posts,
and field
assignments.
Of
the 68
officers
considered in
the temporary
hiring
associated
with
the Capital
Master Plan,
there are 10
officers
remaining on
the list
for placement.
Again
we
note this: a
UN Security
person working
in New York on
a G4
visa, if they
took the post
to protect the
UN Mission in
Libya, their
family would
have to leave
the US in
thirty days.
This is also
the
UN's hammer
over
whisteblowers.
Meanwhile,
inside
the UN itself,
for weeks
those working
in the
Delegates'
Dining Room
have been
asking why
their place of
work, run by
the
contractor
Aramark, will
close on
December and
not re-open.
Aramark
had been
reducing
services,
cutting the
hours of the
staff
cafeteria
for example,
with the UN
saying
nothing.
When
Inner City
Press has
asked about
the enforced
layoffs by
Aramark of
workers in the
UN, the UN has
shifted from
saying it
cares about
the
principles
preached by
the
International
Labor
Organization
to saying
this is
entirely up to
the contractor
-- a defense
used then
rejected
by apparel
makers like
Levis, the Gap
and Nikes. But
not the UN.
On
November 29,
Inner City
Press asked
Ban Ki-moon's
top two
spokespeople:
"Please
confirm
or deny that
Aramark will
cease mid-day
service (and
cut back
on workers) in
the Delegates
Dining Room
from December
20 on, and
explain the
UN's role in
reduction of
service and
employment by
Aramark, and
when their
contract with
the UN will
expire."
So
far no answer,
including to
other
questions
including
these two, on
labor
relations and
UMOJA/
waste at the
UN:
"With
the
UN Staff Union
election
upcoming and
dispute
ranging from
term
limits to how
voters are
grouped and
accredited,
please
describe the
role of the UN
and OHRM,
including in
light of a
statement by
ASG
Pollard that
'OHRM had been
in contact
with Mr. Auda,
Chairman of
the
Polling
Officers,
continually
between 7
October when
the second
list
of staff (as
vetted by EOs
was
transmitted to
him) and 28
October,
2013; and
"With
regard
to UMOJA,
please respond
to the
(whistleblowers')
critique
that the
project now
uses 'Nova to
assign
expenses
retroactively,
for
many years; it
costs in fact
much more than
$200,000 $
only to
capture the
data."
Watch
this
site.
Update:
the UN
Spokesperson's
office also
sent this to
Inner City
Press:
Subject:
Press
release from
the UN Support
Mission in
Libya (UNSMIL)
on a
guard team for
its
headquarters
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at]
un.org
Date: Mon, Dec
2, 2013 at
1:17 PM
Clarification
by
the United
Nations
Support
Mission in
Libya On the
Allocation of
a
Guard Team for
its
Headquarters
in Tripoli
Tripoli,
28
November 2013-
The
United
Nations
Security
Council has
given initial
approval to
the
request of the
United Nations
Secretary
General
regarding the
enhancement of
the protection
of the United
Nations
Support
Mission
in Libya
(UNSMIL)
through a
dedicated
guard team for
its
headquarters
in Tripoli.
This team
should not
exceed 235
elements,
including a
number of
administrative
and services
staff. The
functions of
aforementioned
team shall be
limited to the
protection of
the office
and
accommodation
premises
occupied by
UNSMIL staff
members. The
scope of its
work shall not
exceed the
perimeters of
UNSMIL
headquarters.
The
Mission
had already
informed the
competent
Libyan
authorities
that it
is in the
process of
preparing for
this measure,
which was
discussed
by the
Security
Council. Once
all needed
measures are
finalized, and
as per the
applicable
international
customs and
principles,
the
United Nations
shall send an
official
letter in
which it will
inform
the Libyan
authorities of
those measure
seeking
necessary
approval.
The
Mission
reiterates
that the guard
team will not
be tasked with
any
role beyond
the function
for which it
was
established,
and that the
formation of
such team is a
common
practice
adopted by
international
organizations
and embassies
in a large
number of
countries for
ensuring the
safety of its
staff and
premises.
We'll have
more on this.
, 
