State Dept. Seeks Workers for Hot Spots

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

State Dept. Seeks Workers for Hot Spots

Monday November 19, 2007 9:46 PM

By MATTHEW LEE

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - The State Department has begun
looking for diplomats willing to take hundreds of
unfilled positions at embassies and consulates in 15
dangerous countries after finding enough volunteers
to avoid forcing some to go to Iraq.

Having averted an employee revolt over the prospect
of ordered tours of duty in Iraq, the department is
now seeking foreign service officers for more than
500 jobs at 21 diplomatic missions in those countries,
which include Afghanistan and Pakistan, officials said
Monday.

The selection process for the non-Iraq hardship posts,
all of which are also of limited one-year duration and
covered by restrictions banning or limiting the
presence of family members, starts this week and
should be completed by January, Foreign Service
Director General Harry Thomas said.

-snip-

Thomas said he was “pretty confident” that volunteers
would be found for all the jobs but stressed that if
there were not enough, the department would force
diplomats to fill them under threat of dismissal in the
same so-called “directed assignments” system that
ignited controversy over the Iraq positions.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-7088992,00.html

[robinlynne]

1. good luck with that...

[BeHereNow]

2. Bush and his cabinet need to lead by example.

I think the whole cabal should go serve in the embassy-
and take their families with them.
As the "leaders" they should not ask
others to do what they themselves are
not willing to do...

BHN

[ret5hd]

3. So what happened to the "free market"?

just take bids from people on how much it would take to get them to accept one of these positions, then accept the cheapest one.

[Supersedeas]

4. forced assignments -- Bush bots clearing the field of disloyal independent professionals??

Neo-cons need only apply.