I. DECISION
The following provisions are
issued by decision of the Secretary General:
A. INTRODUCTION
1. Contents. This Administrative Memorandum
governs the procedures to be followed henceforth for the provision of
cleaning and maintenance services, security services, and temporary
secretarial and/or administrative support to the offices in the member
states, the national projects, the inter-American centers operated by the
General Secretariat, and the specialized agencies and organs that are
required to follow the administrative and budgetary regulations of the
General Secretariat (the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the
Inter-American Children's Institute).
2. Objective. The purpose of this Administrative
Memorandum is to help to resolve existing cases of so-called
''local-locals" and avoid such cases in the future. The General
Secretariat is giving careful study to the cases of persons currently
working away from headquarters in this situation, and it is hoped that an
equitable solution to each, in keeping with the nature of the activities
they perform, their years of service, and funds available' will be found
very soon.
3. Definition. The term "local-locals"
is used to identify persons who perform services in the offices in the
member states, projects, inter-American centers, and specialized agencies
or organs under the following conditions:
a. Work day. The person works a regular work
day for the General Secretariat or for the specialized agency or organ,
or a different work day that is no shorter than that established by
national law as constituting an employer-employee relationship
(generally more than four hours a day);
b. Juridical relation. The person has no
employment contract or appointment as a staff member, which implies,
among other things, that he does not enjoy staff benefits and that no
contributions are made to the General Secretariat's social security
system (the Provident Fund or the Retirement and Pension Fund, as the
case may be);
c. Supervision and responsibility. The person
performs duties as a subordinate under the direct supervision of a staff
member and is not employed elsewhere; and
d. Nature of duties. The duties performed by
the person are regular rather than temporary, and would therefore be
performed, under other circumstances, by staff members.
4. Application. For the preceding reasons, this
Administrative Memorandum applies at two levels:
a. First, to regulate for all cases in which a new
provision (or contract) for such services is necessary because of
termination of the current arrangement (owing to the cancellation o a
contract with a company or to the retirement or resignation of the
persons currently providing such services) and
b. Second, to provide guidance to orient the
consideration that should now be undertaken of possibilities for
adapting the ways in which such services are currently rendered to those
established below as preferred options.
5. Decision and information. The directors of
offices in the member states, projects, Inter-American centers, and
specialized agencies and organs shall be authorized to decide, on the
basis of the instructions given below (and subject to the pertinent rules,
regulations and procedures and to the availability of funds), the manner
in which the services referred to in this Administrative Memorandum are to
be provided and shall send a note to the Assistant Secretary for
Management explaining the decision taken. The directors shall also be
responsible for strict compliance with the regulations contained in this
Administrative Memorandum.
6. Kinds of services. The scope of each kind of
service (cleaning and maintenance, security, and temporary secretarial
and/or administrative support services), the options to be considered and
explored in order of priority, and the procedures to be followed in each
case are explained below.
7. General
Guidelines. In general, where an employment contract for the services
is thought to be necessary, the standards, regulations, and procedures
established for the selection and appointment of staff members shall be
applied, subject to the availability of funds. Only in very special cases
may a performance contract (CPR) be issued to an individual to provide
cleaning, maintenance, security, secretarial, or administrative support
services to the General Secretariat. When the services are rendered
through a CPR and a situation arises in which the prevailing practices and
customs of the country require concessions not contemplated in the CPR
regulations and forms, the Secretariat for Management shall be consulted
for guidance.
B. CLEANING AND
MAINTENANCE SERVICES
1. Scope.
These consist of the traditional services of cleaning and maintenance of
the premises and shall be limited to these duties (duties not related with
cleaning and maintenance may not be added) and in time (in general, not
more than four hours a day) to what is actually needed.
2. Options. The following options, appearing in
order of preference, shall be used:
a. The services be provided by the governments of the
member states as part of their contributions to the functioning and
operation of the offices, national projects, inter-American centers or
specialized agency or organ, even when this may require a proportionate
reduction in the current contribution in cash (Fund 18 or other specific
funds) or in the national counterpart for the projects or inter-American
centers.
b. The services be provided by the owner or lessor of
the premises as part of the lease, even if this requires a proportionate
increase in the rent.
c. The services be provided by the tenants'
association of the building in which the premises are located. This
method or option may be used even where there is no formal tenants'
association, since in some cases a number of tenants may wish to
contract jointly for the services of a company or individual. In such
instances, the offices, projects, inter-American centers, or specialized
agencies or organs may join those tenants provided that they confine
themselves to paying their share to them and that the General
Secretariat consequently does not appear as one of the parties hiring
the firm or individual.
d. The services be performed by an established firm
engaged in such services. In this case, a performance contract shall be
issued.
e. Where none of the proceeding methods can be
followed, and as a final option, that the services be performed by an
individual. This option may be applied by contracting:
i. A staff member of the General Secretariat, where
a post is available for that purpose, following the procedures for
competition and selection established in the current regulations and
giving special consideration to the possibility of part-time
employment, or
ii. A performance contractor, through a CPR, in
which case the text appearing as an appendix to this Memorandum shall
be added to the terms of the contract. This contract must conform to
the regulations in force.
3. Procedure:
a. Prior information. The offices, national
projects, inter-American centers or specialized agencies or organs shall
send a note to the Secretariat for Management to explain the decision
taken, describing in detail the steps taken to obtain the services, in
accordance with the various options, and their results.
b. Inquiry. When a new lease or a renewal of
an existing lease is to be negotiated, the option of having the cleaning
and maintenance services provided by the owner or lessor shall be
specifically explored.
c. Quotations by companies. When the services
are provided by a company, the director shall, if possible, obtain
quotations from three different firms.
d. Competition
among individuals. In the event that the only feasible alternative
were to hire an individual under a performance contract, the director
shall make every effort to consider at least three candidates and shall
send two copies of the signed contract, together with a note of
explanation and the selection, to the Department of Human Resources.
C. SECURITY
SERVICES
1. Scope
a. Temporary and exceptional nature. Under
international law, every government is responsible for ensuring the
physical security of the diplomatic missions representing other
countries or international agencies. It is, therefore, up to the
governments to decide on the security measures necessary. Consequently,
in general the General Secretariat shall not be directly involved in the
performance of these services.
b. Wage supplement. If the established
practice of the country requires the payment of moderate wage
supplements to the government agencies (National Police) responsible for
performing such services, these payments shall be entered as an office
maintenance expense (Object of Expenditure 07), and therefore no
contracts of any kind (including CPRs) shall be given to such agents.
c. Additional services. In exceptional
circumstances, certain offices have hired security or guard services for
their premises in addition to those provided by the government. The need
to hire special services of this kind relates solely to the protection
of the physical safety of staff members and/or persons visiting the
premises and not to the protection against theft of equipment and
furniture appearing in the official inventories, which is covered by the
General Secretariat' s comprehensive insurance policy. Therefore,
special contracts for such services issued by the General Secretariat
shall be limited in time to the duration of the exceptional situations
or emergencies justifying them.
2. Options. If such services are not provided by
the governments' and in cases of absolute necessity, the following options
may be used in the following order of preference:
a. The services be provided by the lessor or owner as
part of the lease of the premises.
b. The services be provided by the tenants'
association or a group of tenants of the building, in a manner similar
to that mentioned for cleaning and maintenance services.
c. The services be provided by an established firm
engaged in such services. In this case a performance contract for a
period limited to the duration of the emergency shall be issued.
3. Procedure
a. Options a and b. Options a and b, as well
as the provision of such services by the governments, shall be explored
continuously and do not require prior consultation with headquarters.
b. Option
c. Option c shall be cleared in advance with the Secretariat for
Management. Whenever feasible, the proposal shall include three
quotations from companies specializing in such services. The proposal
shall also contain an estimate of the time during which the services
will be necessary.
D. TEMPORARY
SECRETARIAL AND/OR ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES
1. Scope
a. Temporary
and exceptional nature. In principle, projects do not require
services of this kind because they are usually provided by the
government as part of the national counterpart. However, under certain
circumstances and when the present staff cannot handle the work load,
the temporary hiring of secretarial and administrative support services
(librarians, secretaries, clerks, chauffeurs, messengers, etc.) may be
authorized. Examples of situations in which the need for these services
may arise are the prolonged absence of a staff member due to illness or
vacation -when actual staffing does not allow for a temporary
rearrangement of duties- or the preparation of special project reports,
should direct contracting of services for project of the General
Secretariat be necessary, shall naturally be temporary.
b. Financing. Such contracting shall be
subject to the availability of funds in the respective offices,
projects, inter-American centers, or specialized agencies or organs.
c. Regular personnel services. Should the
services referred to become regular or permanent and the funds available
permit, the only way in which they may be performed shall be by staff
members selected and appointed through competition. Services shall be
understood as permanent or regular when they must be performed by the
same person and are expected to be required for a continuous period of
one year or more, regardless of whether they are rendered in the same
office or at the same project, inter-American center, or specialized
agency or organ.
2. Options. The following options, appearing in
order of preference, shall be used:
a
3. Procedure
a. Prior information. The need for these
services must be duly justified. The proposal must be accompanied by
three quotations from companies that can provide the services, or, in
the case of CPRs with individuals, by the curricula vitae of three
candidates with proof of aptitude.
b. Execution.
Once the CPR has been approved by the Secretariat for Management, two
copies of the signed contract must be sent to the Department of Human
Resources.
II. REVOCATION
OR AMENDMENT
This
Administrative Memorandum revokes any other administrative memorandum,
information instrument applied as a regulation, or practice to the
contrary by the General Secretariat, and may be amended through a
subsequent regulatory instrument at the same or a higher level.
III. EFFECTIVE
DATE
This
Administrative Memorandum shall become effective on the date on which it
is signed.
Don C. Eller*
Assistant
Secretary for Management
March 24, 1986
Original: Spanish
* Original Spanish version signed by the Assistant Secretary for
Management
OAS Form 607
(5/84 )
ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES
GENERAL SECRETARIAT
TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR PERFORMANCE CONTRACT No.
______________
1. The contract covers performance by the contractor
of cleaning services for the premises of the Office of the OAS General
Secretariat in __________________. The contractor is not subject to the
schedule of the General Secretariat nor does it have any subordinate or
exclusive relation whatsoever therewith. Notwithstanding, for purposes
of the corresponding means of access to and security of the
aforementioned premises, the contractor undertakes to provide the
services indicated between _________ and _________ on (indicate the
days). In no case shall such services extend beyond an average of four
hours per day.
2. The service shall be limited to the regular
activities of cleaning the office premises so that the office may be in
the optimum state of cleanliness.*
___________
* If the CPR also includes other activities, such as
preparing and serving coffee, making photocopies or answering the
telephone, the above text must be changed appropriately (for example,
"the service shall be limited. . . cleanliness, and the
preparation and serving of coffee").
FOR THE GENERAL
SECRETARIAT
FOR THE INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR
__________________________
_______________________________
(signature)
(signature)
__________________________
_______________________________
(name)
(name)
__________________________
_______________________________
(title)
(date)
(title) (date)
