Generation 2004 sent a note to Ms WEYAND, Director-General of DG Trade on 4 November 2020 to request clarification on their plans for an office-space reorganisation.
We were contacted in relation to plans to move only assistants/secretaries and clerks (ASTs/AST-SCs) and Contract Agents (CAs) into shared Offices.
Continue reading Office-space reorganisation: reply from DG Trade
Welcome to the last Generation 2004 Newsletter of 2020. And to the end of week 40 of telework for most of us.
Since our last instalment the details of the partial reimbursement of an office chair and screen have become clearer, but there appears to be a second scheme planned, how does this fit with what’s already being done: is it backwards compatible?
The Junior Professionals Programme has been extended to include Contract Agents (CAs), but our look at the eligibility criteria suggests that it’s less inclusive than it seems.
No general return to the office is planned for the foreseeable future, but when it does happen (and it will!) we need to be sure that we don’t return to office space which has been reconfigured in our absence and without our input.
We also provide information on the (even further!) extended deadline for local agents (LAs) to agree new working conditions and point out a couple of pitfalls.
We take a look at the responses you provided to our survey on teleworking from abroad and list some tasks it’s worthwhile getting done this side of the Christmas and New Year break.
So, that’s it for 2020, which, despite not knowing what 2021 will provide, we are only too eager to see it behind us! Take care and enjoy reading!
Generation 2004 asked you for your opinion on this topic in a 10-question survey over 5 weeks October-November 2020 and 1 500 of you responded. The short answer to our question of whether you want to be able to telework from abroad is a resounding ‘YES!’: 93% (1 393) of those who responded would like to have that option available.
Though it must be noted that there are several different versions of ‘yes’ proposed and it was possible to select more than one of them: Yes, for a limited period like summer, Christmas etc./Yes, in exceptional situations like COVID‑19./Yes, permanently.
Continue reading Teleworking from abroad: Survey results are out
Although at the moment you are most probably in full trying-to-find-one-last-gift mode (good luck with that!), there are perhaps some other things worth checking before your well-deserved Christmas and New Year holiday leave.
If you meet the criteria, submit your request to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as it is available: the deadline is 15 January 2021. Continue reading Things to check before holidays start (Tips)
Welcome to the Generation 2004 Newsletter of 19 November 2020. And to week 36 of telework for most of us.
A lot has happened since our last instalment: the promotions and reclassification lists were published on Thursday 12 November, congratulations to those with happy news and for those who are less than happy, check out for the options still open to you (you have until 11 February to act). On the topic of promotions, we address the selective amnesia on display from our peers on our continued abstention from the final vote of the joint promotions committee to endorse the flawed promotions system.
We also show how you can apply the recently-published Eurostat yearly salary update to your salary and have a rough idea of how much is due to you. Also on the topic of money, the Commission has announced that it will contribute to the costs of purchasing a screen and/or office chair: check out on how the just-published reimbursement process.
The modernisation of HR is still in our sights, this time from the point of view of non-permanent staff who provide examples of where to start making the institutions a better place to work for all of us. Our Petition in support of Contract Agents is open until Friday 27 November. We also provide information on the extended deadline for local agents to agree new conditions: the implications of this and what has to happen next. DG HR announced that we can telework pre-Christmas for a week from abroad[1], and we’d still like your opinion on this being made more permanent. Our survey on teleworking from outside the place of employment is open until Friday 27 November: participate! let us hear what works for you!
Finally, we have a look at a recent CJEU Brexit/second nationality case, debunk an office urban legend in the process, while showing that the kind words of June 2016 were just that, kind words.
[1] This was increased to 2 weeks on 20.11.2020: p.7, Point 5.1b: ‘Staff may be authorised by their line manager to telework from abroad as of 10 December and until the start of the end-of-year period of the Commission (24 December)’.
Yes, we can! This is the bottom line of this article. Yes, we can convince the Commission to do the right thing, even if it takes a lot of pressure (and more pressure) and notes (and more notes). After many discussions and meetings, DG HR has agreed in its Coronavirus update #23 to reimburse the costs for a screen and an ergonomic chair with ceilings of €150 and €200, respectively. While the reimbursement process has only just been set out [1] (and for seconded national experts (SNEs) is still being worked on [2]), this is a huge win for our colleagues, and we take the opportunity to thank all of you who have supported us during the last 8 months while we fought this uphill battle. A special thanks goes to the colleagues who used our template to request a reimbursement. While DG HR has refused these Art. 90.1 requests, the sheer number of them proved that there is a real need. This is your victory.
Continue reading Finally – reimbursement of teleworking costs
So, the comforting ideals expressed in ex-President Juncker’s post-Brexit-referendum message to staff appear to have been no more than kind words, something we suggested might be the case in our previous article Were British Hats really left at the door?
The CJEU has read and applied the staff regulations with no special consideration [1] for any ‘European spirit’ and agrees with the Commission that this re-evaluation of entitlements has always been clear to staff, an outcome which is more than a little disconcerting, given that ex-President Juncker himself encouraged affected Brussels-based staff to acquire Belgian nationality. Continue reading Brexit: CJEU confirms fears on loss of entitlements
Generation 2004 strongly believes that a professional and efficient public administration implies competent, motivated and impartial civil servants working in a system dedicated to serving the public interest. However, while it may be relatively easy to of a merit-based civil service in conceptual terms, it is much more difficult to define the ways and means of putting it in practice. If anyone has any doubts about this, then Generation 2004 suggests that any doubtful minds consults. Continue reading Need to design a modern HR policy? Please start with the most evident modifications!
Selective amnesia [1] is a useful thing to keep at hand, not only in politics but also in the staff representation. At the October plenary of the Central Staff Committee some of our colleagues were kind enough to remind us of this fact.
What happened? Well, a little context first. As was already done in 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016 etc., several members of the Joint Promotion Committee (JPC) abstained in the votes on the final outcome of this year’s promotion exercise [2]. Continue reading On endorsing the flawed promotion system: amnesia at the staff committee
See our first article on the modernisation of local agent (LA) conditions of employment.
Extension of timeline for LAs to decide whether or not to sign up to the addendum for LA conditions
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic and the situation of European External Action Service (EEAS) HR Unit BA.5 being rather under-staffed, there is a delay in preparing the local-law reference guide for 140 delegations. Therefore, the initial deadline for signing up the addendum has now been extended to 30 June 2021. See Joint Decision ADMIN(2020) 45 for details.
Continue reading Extension for your decision on the new local agent conditions – 31 June 2021
