United Nations Organizations: Enhanced Efforts Needed to Increase
U.S. Employment at UN Agencies (01-AUG-07, GAO-07-1152T).	 
                                                                 
This testimony discusses ways to improve the representation of	 
American professionals at United Nations (UN) organizations. The 
U.S. Congress continues to be concerned about the		 
underrepresentation of American professionals employed by some UN
organizations and that insufficient progress has been made to	 
improve U.S. representation. The equitable representation of	 
Americans at UN organizations is a priority to Congress in part  
because the United States is the largest financial contributor to
most of these organizations. Moreover, according to the U.S.	 
Department of State (State), Americans bring desirable skills,	 
values, and experience that can have a significant impact on UN  
organizations' operational effectiveness. This testimony is based
on a report that we issued on September 6, 2006. This testimoney 
will discuss (1) U.S. representation status and employment trends
at five UN organizations, (2) factors affecting these		 
organizations' ability to meet U.S. representation targets, and  
(3) State's efforts to improve U.S. representation and additional
efforts that can be taken.					 
-------------------------Indexing Terms------------------------- 
REPORTNUM:   GAO-07-1152T					        
    ACCNO:   A73749						        
  TITLE:     United Nations Organizations: Enhanced Efforts Needed to 
Increase U.S. Employment at UN Agencies 			 
     DATE:   08/01/2007 
  SUBJECT:   Employees						 
	     Employment 					 
	     Hiring policies					 
	     International organizations			 
	     Personnel management				 
	     Personnel recruiting				 

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GAO-07-1152T

   

     * [1]Summary
     * [2]Background
     * [3]U.S. Was Underrepresented in Three of Five UN Agencies and I

          * [4]U.S. Citizens Were Underrepresented Relative to Targets at T
          * [5]Increased Hiring of Americans Needed to Meet Several UN Agen

     * [6]While Common Barriers to Increasing U.S. Representation Exis

          * [7]Common Barriers Adversely Affected U.S. Representation at Se
          * [8]Agency-specific Factors Adversely Affected U.S. Representati

     * [9]State Increased Efforts to Promote U.S. Representation, but

          * [10]State Recruiting Efforts Focused on Senior Positions, and U.
          * [11]State Increased Activities to Support Greater U.S. Represent
          * [12]Additional Options to Target Professional Positions Exist

     * [13]Conclusions

          * [14]GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

     * [15]GAO's Mission
     * [16]Obtaining Copies of GAO Reports and Testimony

          * [17]Order by Mail or Phone

     * [18]To Report Fraud, Waste, and Abuse in Federal Programs
     * [19]Congressional Relations
     * [20]Public Affairs

Testimony

Before the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal
Workforce, and the District of Columbia, Committee on Homeland Security
and GovernmentalAffairs, U.S. Senate

United States Government Accountability Office

GAO

For Release on Delivery
Expected at 2:30 p.m. EDT
Wednesday, August 1, 2007

UNITED NATIONS ORGANIZATIONS

Enhanced Efforts Needed to Increase U.S. Employment at UN Agencies

Statement of Thomas Melito, Director
International Affairs and Trade

GAO-07-1152T

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:

I am pleased to appear today to discuss ways to improve the representation
of American professionals at United Nations (UN) organizations. The U.S.
Congress continues to be concerned about the underrepresentation of
American professionals employed by some UN organizations and that
insufficient progress has been made to improve U.S. representation. The
equitable representation of Americans at UN organizations is a priority to
Congress in part because the United States is the largest financial
contributor to most of these organizations. Moreover, according to the
U.S. Department of State (State), Americans bring desirable skills,
values, and experience that can have a significant impact on UN
organizations' operational effectiveness.

My testimony is based on a report that we issued on September 6, 2006.1
Today I will discuss (1) U.S. representation status and employment trends
at five UN organizations, (2) factors affecting these organizations'
ability to meet U.S. representation targets, and (3) State's efforts to
improve U.S. representation and additional efforts that can be taken.

In preparing this testimony, we relied on our completed review of U.S.
government efforts to increase U.S. employment at UN agencies. To address
our objectives, we analyzed employment data for 2001 through 2005 that we
obtained from five UN agencies; reviewed UN agency and State documents;
and interviewed UN human resources officials, over 100 Americans employed
at the five UN agencies, and U.S. officials. We reviewed the following
five UN agencies: the International Atomic Energy Agency2 (IAEA); the UN
Secretariat; the UN Development Program (UNDP); the UN Educational,
Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); and the Office of the UN
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). We selected these agencies because
they represented a range of UN agencies with different funding mechanisms
and methods for calculating geographic representation. These five agencies
together comprised approximately 50 percent of UN organizations' total
professional staff. In July 2007, State officials updated us on the
actions they have taken in response to our September 2006 recommendations.
We conducted our work for the September 2006 report from July 2005 through
July 2006 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing
standards.

1GAO, United Nations: Additional Efforts Needed to Increase U.S.
Employment at UN Agencies, [21]GAO-06-988 (Washington, D.C.: Sept. 6,
2006).

2Technically, the IAEA is an independent international organization that
has a relationship agreement with the UN. For the purposes of this report,
we refer to the IAEA as a UN agency or organization.

Summary

The United States was underrepresented in three of the five UN agencies we
reviewed, and increased hiring of U.S. citizens is needed to meet
agreed-upon employment targets. Based on UN agencies' formal or informal
targets for equitable geographic representation, U.S. citizens were
underrepresented at IAEA, UNESCO, and UNHCR, and equitably represented at
the UN Secretariat, though close to the lower end of its target range.
UNDP had not established a target for U.S. representation, although U.S.
citizens filled about 11 percent of the agency's professional positions.
Given projected staff levels, retirements, and separations for 2006 to
2010, the Secretariat, IAEA, UNESCO, and UNHCR would need to hire more
Americans than they have hired in recent years to meet their minimum
targets for equitable U.S. representation in 2010.

While the UN agencies we reviewed faced some common barriers to recruiting
and retaining professional staff, including Americans, they also faced
distinct challenges. Most of these barriers and challenges were outside of
the U.S. government's control. Six barriers common to UN agencies we
reviewed included nontransparent human resource practices; a limited
number of positions open to external candidates; lengthy hiring processes;
comparatively low or unclear compensation; required staff mobility and
rotation policies; and limited U.S. government support during Americans'
efforts to obtain, or be promoted at, a UN job. These barriers combined
with distinct agency-specific factors to impede recruitment and retention.
For example, candidates serving in professional positions funded by their
member governments were more likely to be hired by the Secretariat than
those who took the Secretariat's entry-level exam; however, the United
States had not funded such positions at the Secretariat. In addition, IAEA
had difficulty attracting U.S. employees because the number of U.S.
nuclear specialists was decreasing.

State has increased its efforts to support the goal of achieving equitable
U.S. representation at UN organizations, and additional options exist to
target professional positions. State has targeted efforts to recruit U.S.
candidates for senior and policymaking UN positions, and, although it was
difficult to directly link State's efforts to UN hiring decisions, U.S.
representation in senior and policymaking positions either improved or did
not reflect a trend in each of the five UN agencies we reviewed. State
also has undertaken several efforts to improve overall U.S.
representation, including adding staff to its UN employment office and
increasing coordination with other U.S. agencies that work with UN
organizations. For positions below the senior level, State focused on
"getting the word out" by, for example, disseminating information on UN
vacancies through its Web site, attending career fairs and conferences,
and other means. Despite these efforts, U.S. representation in entry-level
positions declined or did not display a trend in four of the five UN
agencies we reviewed. Additional options to target potential pools of
candidates for professional positions include: maintaining a roster of
qualified American candidates; expanding marketing and outreach
activities; increasing UN employment information on U.S. agency Web sites;
and conducting an assessment of the costs and benefits of sponsoring
Junior Professional Officers (JPO), who are entry-level employees that are
financially supported by their home government.

To improve U.S. efforts to increase the employment of Americans at UN
agencies, our report made several recommendations. We recommended that the
Secretary of State (1) provide more consistent and comprehensive
information about UN employment on the State and U.S. mission Web sites
and work with U.S. agencies to expand the UN employment information on
their Web sites; (2) expand targeted recruiting and outreach to more
strategically reach populations of Americans that may be qualified for and
interested in entry- and mid-level UN positions; and (3) conduct an
evaluation of the costs, benefits, and trade-offs of maintaining a roster
of qualified candidates for professional and senior positions determined
to be a high priority for U.S. interests and an evaluation of funding
JPOs, or other gratis personnel, where Americans are underrepresented or
could become underrepresented. In commenting on a draft of this report,
State concurred with and agreed to implement all of our recommendations.
In July 2007, State officials said they had begun to take some actions to
implement our recommendations, such as outreaching to new groups of
Americans and completing a preliminary analysis of the cost of maintaining
a roster.

Background

The United Nations comprises six principal bodies, including the General
Assembly and the Secretariat, as well as funds and programs, such as UNDP,
and specialized agencies, such as UNESCO. These funds, programs, and
specialized agencies have their own governing bodies and budgets, but
follow the guidelines of the UN Charter. Article 101 of the UN Charter
calls for staff to be recruited on the basis of "the highest standards of
efficiency, competence, and integrity" as well as from "as wide a
geographical basis as possible." Each UN agency has developed its own
human resource policies and practices, and staff rules.

Of the five agencies we reviewed, three--the Secretariat, IAEA, and
UNESCO--had quantitative formulas that establish targets for equitable
geographical representation in designated professional positions. UNHCR
had not established a quantitative formula or positions subject to
geographic representation, but had agreed to an informal target for
equitable U.S. representation. UNDP generally followed the principle of
equitable geographic representation, but had not adopted formal or
informal targets. Agencies with formal quantitative targets for equitable
representation do not apply these targets to all professional positions.
Instead, these organizations set aside positions that are subject to
geographic representation from among the professional and senior positions
performing core agency functions, funded from regular budget resources.
Positions that are exempt from being counted geographically include
linguist and peacekeeping positions, positions funded by extra-budgetary
resources, and short-term positions. In addition, these organizations
utilize various nonstaff positions, such as contractors and consultants.

The Department of State is the U.S. agency primarily responsible for
leading U.S. efforts toward achieving equitable U.S. employment
representation in UN organizations. While State is responsible for
promoting and seeking to increase U.S. representation in the UN, the UN
entities themselves are ultimately responsible for hiring their employees
and achieving equitable representation.

U.S. Was Underrepresented in Three of Five UN Agencies and Increased Hiring of
Americans Is Necessary to Meet Employment Targets

U.S. citizens were underrepresented at three of the five UN agencies we
reviewed: IAEA, UNESCO, and UNHCR. Given projected staff levels,
retirements and separations for 2006-2010, these agencies need to hire
more Americans than they have in recent years to meet their minimum
targets for equitable U.S. representation in 2010.

U.S. Citizens Were Underrepresented Relative to Targets at Three UN Agencies

Relative to UN agencies' formal or informal targets for equitable
geographic representation, U.S. citizens were underrepresented at three of
the five agencies we reviewed-IAEA, UNESCO, and UNHCR. U.S. citizens were
equitably represented at the UN Secretariat, though at the lower end of
its target range, while the fifth agency-UNDP-had not established a target
for U.S. representation. U.S. citizens filled about 11 percent of UNDP's
professional positions. Table 1 provides information on U.S.
representation at the five UN agencies as of 2005.

Table 1: U.S. Representation at Five UN Agencies, 2005

                    Percentage of total      Percentage of      Percentage of 
                   geographic positions         geographic     non-geographic 
                      targeted for U.S.   positions filled positions filledby 
UN agency                  citizensa  by U.S. citizensa     U.S. citizensb 
Secretariat              11.5%-15.6%              12.1%               9.5% 
IAEA                           12.9%              11.5%              17.1% 
UNESCO                    6.2%-10.2%               4.1%               1.9% 
UNHCR                            13%               8.0%              11.1% 
UNDP                  Not applicable              10.8%              12.6% 

Source: GAO analysis of Secretariat, IAEA, UNESCO, UNHCR, and UNDP data.

Note: Geographic targets were an average of 2004 and 2005 data. All other
percentages were based on 2005 data.

aUNHCR and UNDP did not have geographic positions; however, UNHCR had
agreed to an informal 13 percent target with the U.S. government. For
these agencies, we calculated the percentage of regular professional
positions filled by U.S. citizens, which included staff under contracts of
longer fixed term (100-series contracts in UNHCR and 100- and 200-series
contracts in UNDP).

bFor the Secretariat, IAEA, and UNESCO, nongeographic positions included
regular professional positions not subject to geographic distribution,
temporary positions, JPOs, and consultants and contractors. UNESCO was
unable to provide nationality data for its 572 consultants and
contractors, which comprised nearly two thirds of UNESCO's nongeographic
staff; hence the U.S. percentage of nongeographic positions did not
reflect U.S. citizen employment in this category. For UNHCR and UNDP,
nongeographic positions were all other, nonregular professional staff,
which included temporary staff (limited fixed term at UNHCR and
assignments of limited duration at UNDP), JPOs, and consultants and
contractors. Agency-provided data did not differentiate between support
and professional level positions for consultants and contractors.

Table 1 also shows that the percentage of U.S. citizens employed in
nongeographic positions (or nonregular positions in the case of UNHCR and
UNDP) was higher at IAEA, UNHCR, and UNDP and lower at the Secretariat and
UNESCO compared to the percentage of geographic (or regular) positions
held by U.S. citizens.

As shown in table 2, U.S. citizen representation in geographic positions
in "all grades" between 2001 and 2005 had been declining at UNHCR and
displayed no clear trend at the other four UN agencies.

Table 2: Trends in U.S. Representation at Five UN Agencies (covering
geographic positions at the Secretariat, IAEA, and UNESCO and regular
positions at UNHCR and UNDP)

                                    Trend from 2001-2005
               U.S.                     U.S. citizens                         
               equitably   U.S.         in                         U.S.       
               represented citizens in  policy-making  U.S.        citizens   
               based on    all          and            citizens in in         
               agreed-upon professional senior-level   entry-level mid-level  
UN agency   targetsa    grade levels positionsb     positionsc  positionsd 
Secretariat Yes         No trend     No trend       No trend    No trend   
IAEA        No          No trend     Increasing     Decreasing  No trend   
UNESCO      No          No trend     No trend       Increasing  No trend   
UNHCR       No          Decreasing   No trend       Decreasing  Decreasing 
UNDP        Not         No trend     Increasing     Decreasing  No trend   
               applicable                                                     

Source: GAO analysis of Secretariat, IAEA, UNESCO, UNHCR, and UNDP data.

Notes:

Trends in U.S. citizen representation refer to the number of U.S. citizens
employed as a percentage of agency employment, in the respective grade,
over the period 2001 to 2005. Increases or decreases were determined by
positive or negative average changes over the period. For more information
on our methodology, see [22]GAO-06-988 , appendix I.

For the Secretariat, IAEA, and UNESCO, the trend analysis was for U.S.
citizens in geographic positions from 2001 to 2005. For UNHCR and UNDP,
the trend analysis, also for 2001 to 2005, was for U.S. citizens in
regular professional positions since these agencies did not have
geographic positions. Regular professional positions for UNHCR and UNDP
included staff under contracts of longer fixed term (100-series contracts
for UNHCR and 100- and 200-series contracts for UNDP).

aThe three agencies with geographic targets were the Secretariat, IAEA,
and UNESCO. UNHCR did not have geographic positions, although it had
agreed to an informal target.

bSenior-level positions represent UN position levels D1 and D2, roughly
equivalent to U.S. government Senior Executive Service. Policy-making
positions represent UN position levels of Deputy or Assistant Director
General at IAEA and UNESCO and Under or Assistant Secretary General at the
Secretariat, UNHCR, and UNDP.

cRepresents UN position levels P1 to P3, roughly equivalent to U.S.
government grade levels 9 to 12/13.

dRepresents UN position levels P4 to P5, roughly equivalent to U.S.
government grade levels 13 to 15.

U.S. representation in policy-making and senior-level positions increased
at two agencies --IAEA and UNDP--and displayed no overall trend at the
Secretariat, UNESCO, and UNHCR over the full five years. At the
Secretariat, although no trend was indicated, U.S. representation had been
decreasing in policy-making and senior-level positions since 2002. At
UNESCO, the data for 2001 to 2004 did not reflect a trend, but the overall
percentage of Americans increased in 2005, reflecting increased recruiting
efforts after the United States rejoined UNESCO in 2003. At UNHCR, the
representation of U.S. citizens in these positions grew steadily from 2001
to 2004, but declined in 2005.

Increased Hiring of Americans Needed to Meet Several UN Agencies' Minimum
Targets

We estimated that each of the four agencies with geographic targets-the
Secretariat, IAEA, UNESCO, and UNHCR-would need to hire U.S. citizens in
greater numbers than they had in recent years to achieve their minimum
targets by 2010, given projected staff levels, retirements, and
separations; otherwise, with the exception of UNESCO, U.S. geographic
representation will decline further. As shown in table 3, IAEA and UNHCR
would need to more than double their current average hiring rate to
achieve targets for U.S. representation. The Secretariat could continue to
meet its minimum geographic target for U.S. citizens if it increased its
annual hiring of U.S. citizens from 20 to 23. UNESCO could achieve its
minimum geographic target by increasing its current hiring average of 4.5
Americans to 6 Americans. Although the fifth agency, UNDP, did not have a
target, it would have to increase its annual hiring average of U.S.
citizens from 17.5 to 26 in order to maintain its current ratio of U.S.
regular professional staff to total agency regular professional staff.

Table 3: Estimated Numbers of U.S. Citizens to be Hired to Meet Geographic
and Other Targets for 2006 to 2010

                                                       Minimum                
                                                       average                
                                                     number of                
                   Average    Average                     U.S.      Resulting 
                    annual  number of              citizens to     geographic 
                 number of       U.S.   Percentage    be hired representation 
               total staff   citizens     of total  each year,     in 2010 if 
                hired into hired into   geographic  2006-2010, agency follows 
                geographic geographic    positions    to reach      2001-2005 
                 positions  positions targeted for  geographic hiring average 
                each year, each year,         U.S.   target in       for U.S. 
UN agency    2001-2005a 2001-2005a    citizensb        2010       citizens 
Secretariat         170         20  11.5%-15.6%          23          10.9% 
IAEA                 77          6        12.9%          16           7.1% 
UNESCO               55        4.5   6.2%-10.2%           6           5.1% 
UNHCRc              148         10          13%          25           7.9% 
UNDP                153       17.5          Not          26           8.6% 
                                        applicable                            

Source: GAO analysis of Secretariat, IAEA, UNESCO, UNHCR, and UNDP data.

aFor UNHCR and UNDP, which did not have geographic positions, we
calculated the average number of regular professional U.S. staff hired
each year (2001 to 2005), including separations and retirements. Regular
professional included staff under contracts of longer fixed term
(100-series contracts in UNHCR and 100- and 200-series contracts in UNDP).

bFor UNHCR, we used the informal target of 13 percent for U.S. citizens,
agreed upon by UNHCR and the U.S. government. For UNDP, we used the target
of 11.1 percent, the average U.S. employment from 2001 to 2005.

cThe minimum average number of U.S. citizens to be hired each year, 25,
was based on a zero percent rate of growth of staff, which UNHCR officials
indicated was appropriate for 2006 to 2010. From 2001 to 2005, UNHCR's
staff grew at an average annual rate of 6 percent. Under this assumption,
the minimum number of U.S. citizens to be hired annually would increase to
40.

If current hiring levels are maintained through 2010, two of the five
agencies-IAEA and UNHCR-would fall substantially below their minimum
targets. In only one agency-UNESCO-would the percentage of geographic
positions filled by U.S. citizens increase under current hiring levels,
due in part to the recent increased hiring of U.S. citizens.

While Common Barriers to Increasing U.S. Representation Existed, UN Agencies
Also Faced Distinct Employment Challenges

A combination of barriers, including some common factors as well as
agency-specific factors, adversely affected recruitment and retention of
professional staff, including Americans, at each of the five UN agencies.
These barriers combined with distinct agency-specific factors to impede
recruitment and retention.

Common Barriers Adversely Affected U.S. Representation at Several UN Agencies

We identified the following six barriers that affected U.S. representation
in the UN agencies we reviewed, though often to differing degrees:

           o Nontransparent human resource practices. A key barrier to
           American representation across the five UN agencies was the lack
           of transparent human resource management practices, according to
           Americans employed at UN organizations. For example, some UN
           managers circumvented the competitive hiring process by employing
           individuals on short-term contracts--positions that were not
           vetted through the regular, competitive process--for long-term
           needs.

           o Limited external opportunities. Recruiting U.S. candidates was
           difficult because agencies offered a limited number of posts to
           external candidates. Each of the organizations we reviewed, except
           IAEA, advertised professional vacancies to current employees
           before advertising them externally in order to provide career
           paths and motivation for their staff. We found that three of the
           five agencies--UNESCO, UNHCR, and UNDP--filled 50 percent or more
           of new appointments through promotions or with other internal
           candidates rather than by hiring external candidates. IAEA filled
           a large percentage of its positions with external candidates
           because, in addition to not giving internal candidates hiring
           preference, the agency employed the majority of its staff members
           for 7 years or less. Although the data indicated that the
           Secretariat hired a significant percentage of external candidates,
           the Secretariat's definition of "external candidates" included
           staff on temporary contracts and individuals who had previous
           experience working at the agency.

           o Lengthy hiring process. The agencies' lengthy hiring processes
           can deter candidates from accepting UN employment. For example, a
           report from the Secretary General3 stated that the average hiring
           process was too slow, taking 174 days from the time a vacancy
           announcement was issued to the time a candidate was selected,
           causing some qualified applicants to accept jobs elsewhere. Many
           Americans that we interviewed concurred with the report, saying
           that it was difficult to plan a job move when there was a long
           delay between submitting an application and receiving an offer. In
           March 2006, the Secretary General proposed cutting the average
           recruitment time in half.

           o Low or unclear compensation. Comparatively low salaries and
           benefits that were not clearly explained were among the most
           frequently mentioned deterrents to UN employment for Americans.
           American employees we interviewed noted that UN salaries,
           particularly for senior and technical posts, were not comparable
           with U.S. government and private sector salaries. When candidates
           consider UN salaries in tandem with UN employee benefits, such as
           possible reimbursement for U.S. taxes and school tuition
           allowances through college, UN compensation may be more
           attractive. However, U.S. citizens employed at IAEA and UNESCO
           said that their agency did not clearly explain the benefits, or
           explained them only after a candidate had accepted a position.
           Incomplete or late information hampered a candidate's ability to
           decide in a timely manner whether a UN position was in his or her
           best interests. In addition, difficulty securing spousal
           employment can decrease family income and may also affect American
           recruitment since many U.S. families have two wage earners. At
           many overseas UN duty stations, work permits can be difficult to
           obtain, the local economy may offer few employment opportunities,
           and knowledge of the local language may be required.

           o Required mobility or rotation. UNHCR and UNDP required their
           staff to change posts at least every 3 to 6 years with the
           expectation that staff serve the larger portion of their career in
           the field; the UN Secretariat and UNESCO were implementing similar
           policies. While IAEA did not require its employees to change
           posts, it generally only hired employees for 7 years or less. Such
           policies dissuaded some Americans from accepting or staying in a
           UN position because of the disruptions to personal or family life
           such frequent moves can cause.
			  
3UN General Assembly, 60th Session. Invesing in the United Nations for a
Stronger Organization Worldwide: Report of the Secretary-General
(A/60/692). 7 March 2006.

           o Limited U.S. government support. At four of the five agencies we
           reviewed--all except IAEA--a number of American employees said
           that they did not receive U.S. government support during their
           efforts to obtain a UN job or to be promoted at the job they held.
           The U.S. government supported candidates applying for
           director-level, or higher, posts, and put less emphasis on
           supporting candidates seeking lower-level professional posts.
           Although UN employees are international civil servants directly
           hired by UN agencies, some countries facilitate the recruitment of
           their nationals by referring qualified candidates, conducting
           recruitment missions, and sponsoring JPOs or Associate Experts.4

           Distinct agency-specific factors also impeded recruitment and
           retention. For example,

           o Candidates serving in professional positions funded by their
           member governments were more likely to be hired by the Secretariat
           than those who took the Secretariat's entry-level exam; however,
           the United States had not funded such positions at the
           Secretariat. At the entry level, hiring for professional positions
           was limited to an average of 2 percent of individuals invited to
           take the Secretariat's National Competitive Recruitment Exam. In
           contrast, the Secretariat hired an average of 65 percent of
           Associate Experts sponsored by their national government.
			  
Agency-specific Factors Adversely Affected U.S. Representation at Several UN
Agencies

           o Continuing U.S. underrepresentation at the IAEA was described by
           U.S. government officials as a "supply-side issue," with the pool
           of American candidates with the necessary education and experience
           decreasing, as nuclear specialists are aging and few young people
           are entering the nuclear field.

           o The United States' 19-year withdrawal from UNESCO contributed to
           its underrepresentation. When the United States left UNESCO in
           1984, Americans comprised 9.6 percent of the organization's
           geographic professional staff. When it rejoined in 2003, Americans
           comprised only 2.9 percent. By 2005 that number had increased to
           4.1 percent--the third largest group of nationals UNESCO employed,
           although still below the minimum geographic target.
			  
4JPO or Associate Expert positions are funded by member states for periods
of 2 or 3 years and provide opportunities for young professionals to gain
experience in UN organizations. While, upon completion of the programs,
these young professionals are not guaranteed employment at the agency and
must apply for positions through the regular process, UN officials stated
that the JPO experience provides applicants an advantage over their
competitors.			  

           o The difficult conditions that accompany much of UNHCR's work,
           coupled with the requirement to change duty stations every 4
           years, contributed to attrition at the mid-career levels. UNHCR's
           requirement that employees change duty stations every 4 years was
           one of the most frequently cited barriers to retaining staff among
           the American employees we interviewed. UNHCR's mission to
           safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees necessitates work
           in hardship and high-risk locations. As such, UNHCR has twice as
           many hardship duty stations as any other UN agency.

           o Several barriers to increasing U.S. representation were the
           leading factors at UNDP and were also present at other UN
           agencies, according to American employees and other officials. In
           addition, UNDP's Executive Board had traditionally managed the
           organization with the understanding that its staff be equally
           represented from northern (mostly developed) and southern (mostly
           developing) countries, and had recently focused on improving the
           north-south balance of staff at management levels by increasing
           the hiring of candidates from southern countries.
			  
			  State Increased Efforts to Promote U.S. Representation, but
			  Additional Options Exist to Target Professional Positions

           State targeted its recruitment efforts for senior and
           policy-making UN positions, and, although it was difficult to
           directly link State's efforts to UN hiring decisions, U.S.
           representation in these positions either improved or displayed no
           trend in the five UN agencies we reviewed. State also increased
           its efforts to improve overall U.S. representation; however,
           despite these efforts, U.S. representation in entry-level
           positions declined or did not reflect a trend in four of the five
           UN agencies. Additional options exist to target potential pools of
           candidates for these positions.
			  
			  State Recruiting Efforts Focused on Senior Positions, and U.S.
			  Representation in These Positions Improved or Showed No Trend
			  
           State focused its recruiting efforts for U.S. citizen employment
           at UN agencies on senior-level and policy-making positions because
           of the influence that these positions have within the
           organization. Although it is difficult to directly link State's
           efforts to UN hiring decisions, the percentage of U.S.
           representation in senior and policymaking positions either
           increased or did not display a trend at each of the five UN
           agencies we reviewed between 2001 and 2005. The U.S. share of
           senior and policymaking positions increased at IAEA and UNDP,
           whereas the U.S. share of these positions at the other three UN
           agencies displayed no trend over that period.
			  
			  State Increased Activities to Support Greater U.S. Representation,
			  but the Employment of Americans in Entry-level Positions Declined
			  or Displayed No Trend in Four Agencies

           Since 2001, State has devoted additional resources and undertaken
           several new initiatives in its role as the lead U.S. agency for
           supporting and promoting the employment of Americans in UN
           organizations. First, State increased resources for disseminating
           UN vacancy information. State increased the number of staff
           positions from two to five, and added a sixth person who worked
           part-time on UN employment issues. One of the new staff focused on
           recruiting Americans for senior-level positions at UN
           organizations.5 According to State, the other staff have been
           recruiting candidates for professional positions at career fairs
           and other venues; however, a large portion of their work has been
           focused on providing information to potential applicants and
           disseminating information on UN vacancies and opportunities. In
           addition, State has increased outreach for the Secretariat's
           annual National Competitive Recruitment Exam for entry-level
           candidates by advertising it in selected newspapers. The number of
           Americans invited to take the exam increased from 40 in 2001 to
           277 in 2004. State reported that 178 Americans in 2007 were
           invited to take the exam. Second, U.S. missions have shared U.S.
           representation reports and discussed openings with UN officials.
           State prepares annual reports to Congress that provide data on
           U.S. employment at UN agencies as well as State's assessment of
           U.S. representation at selected UN organizations and these
           organizations' efforts to hire more Americans. State is providing
           these reports to UN agencies, as we recommended in 2001. U.S.
           mission officials told us that they periodically meet with UN
           officials to discuss U.S. representation and upcoming vacancies.

           Finally, State has increased coordination with U.S. agencies. In
           2003, State established an interagency task force to address the
           low representation of Americans in international organizations.
           Since then, task members have met annually to discuss U.S.
           employment issues. Task force participants told us that at these
           meetings, State officials reported on their outreach activities
           and encouraged agencies to promote the employment of Americans at
           UN organizations. One of the topics discussed by task force
           members was how to increase support for details and transfers of
           U.S. agency employees to UN organizations. In May 2006, the
           Secretary of State sent letters to the heads of 23 federal
           agencies urging that they review their policies for transferring
           and detailing employees to international organizations to ensure
           that these mechanisms are positively and actively promoted.6 While
           the Secretary's letters may help to spur U.S. agencies to clarify
           their support for these initiatives, agency officials told us that
           their offices lacked the resources for staff details, which
           involve paying the salary of the detailed staff as well as
           "backfilling" that person's position by adding a replacement.7
           State also has been periodically meeting one-on-one with U.S.
           agencies to discuss the employment situation and recruiting
           efforts at specific UN organizations. A State official told us
           that State's UN employment office meets with a few U.S. agencies
           per year to discuss UN agency staffing issues.
			  
5State officials said this staff member left the department in June 2007.

           Despite the new and continuing activities undertaken by State,
           U.S. representation in entry-level positions declined or displayed
           no trend in four of the five agencies we reviewed. U.S.
           representation in these positions declined at IAEA, UNHCR, and
           UNDP. The representation of Americans in entry-level positions at
           the Secretariat displayed no trend during the time period. At
           UNESCO, U.S. representation increased from 1.3 percent in 2003 to
           2.7 percent in 2004, reflecting the time period when the United
           States rejoined the organization.
			  
			  Additional Options to Target Professional Positions Exist

           We identified several options to target U.S. representation in
           professional positions, including the following:

           o Maintaining a roster of qualified candidates. Prior to 2001,
           State had maintained a roster of qualified American candidates for
           professional and technical positions, but discontinued it. State
           officials told us that they have not maintained a professional
           roster, or the prescreening of candidates, despite the recent
           increase in staff resources, because maintaining such a roster had
           been resource intensive and because the office does not actively
           recruit for UN professional positions at the entry- and
           mid-levels. However, State acknowledged that utilizing new
           technologies, such as developing a Web-based roster, may reduce
           the time and cost of updating a roster. Other U.S. government and
           UN officials told us that some other countries maintained rosters
           of prescreened, qualified candidates for UN positions and that
           this practice was an effective strategy for promoting their
           nationals. In July 2007, State officials said that they began
           researching Internet-based options for compiling a roster of
           potential U.S. candidates. State estimated the cost to set up such
           a roster at about $100,000, but had not received funding for the
           roster.

6Executive Order 11552, issued in 1970, mandates that federal agencies
shall assist and encourage details and transfers of their employees to
international organizations and that State shall lead and coordinate these
efforts. The order also specifies that vacancies in international
organizations should be brought to the attention of well-qualified federal
employees and that upon the return of an employee to his agency, the
agency shall give due consideration to the experience the employee may
have gained during the detail or transfer.

7Transferred employees are paid by the UN organization, while detailed
employees would remain on the U.S. agency's payroll.

           o Expanding marketing and outreach activities. State had not taken
           steps that could further expand the audience for its outreach
           efforts. For example, while State had increased its coordination
           with other U.S. agencies on UN employment issues and distributed
           the biweekly vacancy announcements to agency contacts, U.S. agency
           officials that received these vacancy announcements told us that
           they lacked the authority to distribute the vacancies beyond their
           particular office or division. One official commented that State
           had not established the appropriate contacts to facilitate
           agency-wide distribution of UN vacancies, and that the limited
           dissemination had neutralized the impact of this effort. Several
           inter-agency task force participants also stated that no specific
           follow-up activities were discussed or planned between the annual
           meetings, and they could not point to any tangible results or
           outcomes resulting from the meetings. State also had not taken
           advantage of opportunities to expand the audience for its outreach
           activities. For example, State did not work with the Association
           of Professional Schools of International Affairs to reach
           potential candidates or advertise in some outlets that reach Peace
           Corps volunteers. In July 2007, State officials said they continue
           to outreach to new groups and attend new career fairs but have
           faced difficulty in identifying pools of candidates with the
           required skills and experience.

           o Increasing and improving UN employment information on U.S.
           agency Web sites. State's UN vacancy list and its UN employment
           Web site had limitations. For example, the list of vacancies was
           not organized by occupation, or even organization, and readers had
           to search the entire list for openings in their areas of interest.
           Further, State's UN employment Web site had limited information on
           other UN employment programs and did not link to U.S. agencies
           that provide more specific information, such as the Department of
           Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory Web site. In addition, the
           Web site provided limited information or tools to clarify common
           questions, such as those pertaining to compensation and benefits.
           For example, the Web site did not provide a means for applicants
           to obtain more specific information on their expected total
           compensation, including benefits and U.S. income tax. Since we
           issued our report, State has added a UN pamphlet on benefits and
           compensation to its Web site. In July 2007, State officials told
           us they are exploring ways to improve the information available on
           UN compensation and benefits. For our 2006 report, we reviewed 22
           additional U.S. mission and U.S. agency Web sites, and they
           revealed varying, and in many cases limited, information on UN
           employment opportunities. Overall, 9 of the 22 U.S. mission and
           agency Web sites did not have links to UN employment
           opportunities. Nearly 60 percent of the missions and agencies
           provided some information or links to information on salaries and
           benefits. We updated our analysis in July 2007 and found the
           situation had worsened somewhat. Eleven of the 22 U.S. mission and
           agency Web sites did not have links to UN employment
           opportunities8 and only about 50 percent of these Web sites
           provided some information or links to information on salaries and
           benefits.

           o Analyzing the costs and benefits of sponsoring JPOs. The U.S.
           government sponsored JPOs at two of the five UN agencies that we
           reviewed, but had not assessed the overall costs and benefits of
           supporting JPOs as a mechanism for increasing U.S. representation
           across UN agencies. Among the five agencies, State had funded a
           long-standing JPO program only at UNHCR, sponsoring an average of
           15 JPOs per year between 2001 and 2005. The Department of Energy's
           Brookhaven National Laboratory also had supported two JPOs at IAEA
           since 2004.9 For four of the five agencies we reviewed,10 the
           percentage of individuals that were hired for regular positions
           upon completion of the JPO program ranged from 34 to 65 percent.
           In some cases, former JPOs were offered regular positions and did
           not accept them, or took positions in other UN organizations. The
           estimated annual cost for these positions to the sponsoring
           government ranged from $100,000 to $140,000 at the five UN
           agencies. State officials told us in July 2007 that they had not
           assessed the overall costs and benefits of supporting JPOs.
			  
			  Conclusions

           Achieving equitable U.S. representation will be an increasingly
           difficult hurdle to overcome at UN organizations. Four of the five
           UN organizations we reviewed, all except UNESCO, will have to hire
           Americans in increasing numbers merely to maintain the current
           levels of U.S. representation. Failure to increase such hiring
           will lead the four UN organizations with geographic targets to
           fall below or stay below the minimum thresholds set for U.S.
           employment.
			  
8Four of the six U.S. missions have Web sites. All four Web sites have
links to State's employment page.

9According to officials, Brookhaven and State's Bureau for International
Security and Non-Proliferation also fund Cost-Free Experts at IAEA. These
are technical specialists who work on short-term projects at IAEA for
periods of 1 to 3 years.

10IAEA did not provide JPO retention rate data.

           As the lead department in charge of U.S. government efforts to
           promote equitable American representation at the UN, State will
           continue to face a number of barriers to increasing the employment
           of Americans at these organizations, most of which are outside the
           U.S. government's control. For example, lengthy hiring processes
           and mandatory rotation policies can deter qualified Americans from
           applying for or remaining in UN positions.

           Nonetheless, if increasing the number of U.S. citizens employed at
           UN organizations remains a high priority for State, it is
           important that the department facilitate a continuing supply of
           qualified applicants for UN professional positions at all levels.
           State focuses much of its recruiting efforts on senior and
           policy-making positions, and U.S. citizens hold over 10 percent of
           these positions at four of the five agencies we reviewed. While
           State has increased its resources and activities in recent years
           to support increased U.S. representation overall, additional
           actions to facilitate the employment of Americans in entry- and
           mid-level professional positions are needed to overcome declining
           U.S. employment in these positions and meet employment targets.

           Because equitable representation of Americans employed at UN
           organizations has been a high priority for U.S. interests, we
           recommended that the Secretary of State take the following
           actions:

           o provide more consistent and comprehensive information about UN
           employment on the State and U.S. mission Web sites and work with
           U.S. agencies to expand the UN employment information on their Web
           sites. This could include identifying options for developing a
           benefits calculator that would enable applicants to better
           estimate their potential total compensation based on their
           individual circumstances;

           o expand targeted recruiting and outreach to more strategically
           reach populations of Americans that may be qualified for and
           interested in entry- and mid-level UN positions; and

           o conduct an evaluation of the costs, benefits, and trade-offs of:
			  
			  o maintaining a roster of qualified candidates for professional
			  and senior positions determined to be a high priority for U.S.
			  interests;

           o funding Junior Professional Officers, or other gratis personnel,
			  where Americans are underrepresented or in danger of becoming
           underrepresented.


In commenting on a draft of our 2006 report, State concurred with and
agreed to implement all of our recommendations. In July 2007, State
officials updated us on the actions they have taken in response to our 2006
report recommendations.
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, this concludes my
prepared statement. I would be pleased to answer any questions that you
may have.

GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

Should you have any questions about this testimony, please contact
Thomas Melito, Director, at (202) 512-9601 or [email protected]. Other
major contributors to this testimony were Cheryl Goodman, Assistant
Director; Jeremy Latimer; Miriam Carroll; R.G. Steinman; Barbara Shields;
Lyric Clark; Sarah Chankin-Gould; Joe Carney; and Debbie Chung. Martin
De Alteriis, Bruce Kutnick, Anna Maria Ortiz, Mary Moutsos, Mark Speight,
and George Taylor provided technical assistance.
GAO Contact and Staff
           
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