Personnel

Long service award

Shuibao Liu, UNOG

Those amongst you who were born in 1945 must feel lucky this year since the whole world is celebrating your birthday at the same time as that of the United Nations. Those amongst you who joined the United Nations before they were 35 years old will be even luckier because they are going to get something extra- A Long Service Award. In preparation of the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the United Nations, and as part of its activities, the Staff Coordinating Council of the United Nations Office in Geneva has decided to offer a Long Service Award to those staff who have more than 25 years of service with the Organization by the end of February of 2005.
Staff members who have worked for the Organization for more than 25 years must all feel very proud of their long years of dedicated and loyal service. The desire for change and for something new is part of human nature. In this sense, to work in one place for such a long time is not easy, overcoming the constant temptation to find something new and better. On the other hand a quarter of a century ago we joined the Organization full of idealism, ready to devote our whole life to its ideals, and in that sense, it is logical to stick to one Organization. Of course, from an historical point of view, 25 years is merely the wink of an eye. However, as the professional life of most of us normally lasts 25 to 30 years, it is this life long service that merits recognition.
The Long Service Award will be offered to two categories of staff: those with 25 or more years and those with 30 or more years of service. They will all receive a Long Service Certificate and a medal. The only difference between the two being in the colour of the Certificate and the medal – silver for the 25 year award and gold for the 30 year award. According to the list provided by the UNOG Administration through IMIS, including UNOG Administration, Conference Service, UNCTAD, UNECE, ITC, OCHA, Library, OHCHR and UNEP, by the end of February 2005 there will be 180 staff members with more 25 years of service and 150 with more than 30 years of service.
Unfortunately, the inhuman IMIS only recognizes the EOD and does not take into consideration factors such as short-term contracts before a formal fixed-term appointment, nor appointments in other organizations. It is therefore to be regretted that some staff members who think that they have served the United Nations for more than 25 years may be excluded from the list while some other staff members who think that they have served the United Nations for more than 30 years may be included in the category of 25 years. In this situation, the Council can only follow the IMIS list and apologizes to those who are excluded or wrongly categorized by the IMIS.
The ceremony will take place on the last day of the February 2005 from 10:00 a.m. onwards in the General Assembly Hall. All staff members are invited to attend.