International Civil Servants slam ICSC, prepare for global action

A letter sent to UN leaders by a coalition of Staff Unions, highlighted the "substantial deterioration in the employment conditions of UN staff around the world, caused by ICSC's findings, recommendations and decisions," resulting from "an austerity agenda driven by certain member states."

A range of factors influenced the decision to take action, including:

(i) negative changes to compensation packages equivalent to the loss of up to one month's salary for affected staff;

(ii) pay cuts in the face of rising costs of living at a number of duty stations and peacekeeping missions;

(iii) unrealistic reclassification of hardship in the most challenging operational environments;

(iv) unrealistic classification of family duty stations;

(v) volatile levels of post adjustment in the field;

(vi) a lack of adequate protection against inflation and currency devaluation for local and international staff in the field;

(vii) an unwillingness to provide the same danger pay to locally-recruited staff as to international staff; and others.

Unions are calling for an overhaul of the ICSC which has an out-dated governance model and refuses to engage in dialogue or allow appeals of its decisions.

The action on Tuesday, set to include work stopages and protests, marks one of the first times that such activity has taken place in UN locations across the world, highlighting the growing strength of organised labour within the organsiation.

ICSC is serving the Austerity Agenda based on cost cutting, with no accountabity to UN Agencies or staff. Join UN Staff Feb 27.#ICSCNoTrust @ILOUnionPres @PSIglobalunion pic.twitter.com/Buuu22ntbW

— Daniel Cork (@DanielCorkSUC) February 24, 2018

Public Services International and our affiliates stand with International Civil Servants, whose dedication to service often sees them deployed to dangerous crises across the world.

PSI will be addressing a letter to all United Nations Executive Heads expressing our support for these workers on the frontlines of the fight for Human Rights.