Big staff turnover plagues U.S. rebuilding in Iraq

[Barrett808]

Rapid turnover and a shortage of experienced U.S. staff in Iraq managing billions of dollars of contracts is wreaking havoc on a rebuilding plan already slowed down by violence.

Companies working in Iraq, auditors and the U.S. government office running the $18.4 billion U.S. rebuilding program all say contracting staff shortages in Baghdad are a problem as overworked employees struggle to oversee and award contracts in a stressful, hostile environment.

"The big elephant in the room is we don't have enough procurement staff (in Iraq)," said Professor Steven Schooner, a procurement specialist at George Washington University.

U.S. government audits released on Wednesday by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction pointed repeatedly to the high turnover rate and quick rotations of contracting staff as a contributing factor to stalling the U.S. rebuilding plan.

Auditors are planning an audit to see whether U.S. recruitment and deployment processes for staff supporting Iraq reconstruction is effective.

(more)

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050505/pl_nm/iraq_contracts_dc

[skypilot]

1. The big elephant in the room...

...it seems to me is that Iraqis need jobs too. How much of a role are they being allowed in rebuilding their country?

[underpants]

7. Send resumes now to heritagefoundation.org

I guess all those 20 year olds have padded their resumes enough...oh but it is safe better than ever....

[Jacobin]

2. Not to mention those $35,000 six mile cab rides

Maybe we should get a clue and understand that they don't want our 'help'......

I'm just sayin

[daleo]

3. Get in quick, grab as much dough as you can, get out before being killed.

That mentality could result in a high staff turnover, alright.

[Demit]

5. Yup. They're procuring everything that isn't nailed down

[Spazito]

4. Not to mention the hundreds of millions missing

from the 'fund'.

[underpants]

6. What a shame they were doing such a WONDERFUL job too

$9 Billion!!!

[cap]

8. excuse for outsourcing

Americans AND Iraqis are too expensive... Want to bring in the cheapest Third World labor we can find... just watch and see.

They also wanted a high turnover rate among the procurement staff so that the books arent kept in order and its easier to hide corruption

[Daphne08]

9. Sounds like the beginning of the old

Cover Your Ass game to me!

[Zorra]

10. The cost of this occupation is unfrigginbelievable.

It is destroying the USA.