European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 1, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 letters the stars and stripes monday october 1,1990 mme idea program still Ain t working right i recommend commander in chief Usa eur level action be taken to put some Teeth into the ideas of excellence program Aiea formerly the incentive awards program. The program is an excellent one mandated by Congress. In fact with current and forthcoming budget cuts of a huge magnitude facing the the value of the program has taken on even added significance. However it still ainu to working right the time it takes to move simple suggestions that in some instances should take hours takes months at lower Levels of review. Suggestions that Are obvious and require higher level approval still catch dust at lower Levels of command. Long suspense dates and inadequate follow ups Are major contributing causes to the problem. Failure to improve the situation results not Only in frustration on the suggest Era a part thus discouraging future participation in the program out could jeopardize lives and the safety of personnel should the suggestion pertain to safety a or it might result in the delay of implementing Cost effective ideas which could total hundreds of thousands of dollars if not millions. The Aiea clerks try. Even at the higher Levels they try but alas they too Are frustrated. The solution if one is truly desired is discipline from the top with set standards and possible performance evaluation penalties for failure to move suggestions from one level to the next with reasonable dispatch. We certainly have enough software available to re Cord the data on submissions of suggestions e.g., Date received the Date forwarded for evaluation the due Date of return with a red Fla the action taken if replies do not meet suspense dates Etc. The Dollar value of Aiea probably runs into the millions. What we need is an ombudsman at cinc level not Deputy chief of staff resource management the Aiea program manager to receive and Analyse printouts and to take appropriate action on the a red flags a and also to answer complaints by Sug Gesters encountering inordinate delays. Perhaps then the program will work much More effectively. This letter is submitted not to Embarrass any particular Community but simply to Alert the top brass that action to enhance the program and to prevent it from losing to two of the a greatest non wartime enemies complacency and procrastination. A name and location withheld editors note a Edwina Sagitto management analyst office of the Deputy chief of staff resource management he Usa eur replies the writer is Correct. Sometimes it takes too Long to answer a suggestion. Usa eur individuals submit Over 5,000 Good ideas a year. Last year alone these ideas saved Usa eur Over $9 million. Many tackle Complex problems evaluating them requires research and coordination with the functional experts. Quality and timely evaluations Are a top priority. They can take a lot of time. Aiea program managers throughout Usa eur use automation to track ideas. Turnaround times Are briefed at review and analysis presentations and Progress is monitored As an Community of excellence service Standard. As a result our response times continue to improve but we know we can do better. Rather than discipline from the top with penalties for failure we take a positive approach to improving the Quality and timeliness of evaluations. We have periodic evaluator ceremonies at which outstanding evaluators Are honoured for their accomplishments. Training is offered regularly to enhance Good performance. Usa eur recognizes outstanding Community Aiea program managers with an annual award which judges Community programs on innovation publicity education Quality and program efficiency. Regarding a a cinc level ombudsman a we have Many in the command. The Aiea is a Community commanders program to Cut through the bureaucracy and to get Good ideas implemented fast. From the Deputy commander in chief cinc to the Deputy Community commanders docs we enjoy the support of commanders with a Bias for action and a progressive and innovative attitude. Complacency and procrastination Are enemies we can do without. The Aiea helps the overcome these enemies. We will not Settle for mediocrity and will continue to improve our program with the assistance of the Many hard working and dedicated Aiea program managers who act As True advocates for Good military spouse hiring policy discussed i am a victim of the military spouse preference policy. In my wildest dreams i never thought i would undergo such an enormous and rigorous Endeavor to seek employment for career progression and stability. The military spouse preference policy restricts Many spouses from obtaining permanent employment. Spouses in the surrounding area and abroad have experienced incoherent conflicting incomparable and suppressing information pertaining to this policy. We have United together to address issues with appointing officials who arc responsible for establishing and enforcing this policy. My understanding is the initial aspects of the map policy were created to work in favor of the military spouse. However Many spouses and officials Are unaware of the negative effects of this policy. The application of the Rule is affecting a great Deal of spouses unfavourably. A lot of spouses have suffered and Are still suffering due to the Lack of information being administered by the civilian personnel offices in Usa eur. We were misinformed about pertinent information relating to the effects of this policy. The policy implements restrictions which prohibit spouses from obtaining meaningful employment with civil service in Usa eur. I have met with certain officials and obtained some positive results. Any spouses who have been and Are victims of this policy should write and let a spouses against a spa know and share your concern. We Are trying to help As Many spouses As possible. Your support would Benefit All spouses you your career Ana family in getting amendments made to this policy such As the following termination of map a except employment with the Burger bar or any Concession. A except employment with cafes. A except employment with civil service a a projected to last a year. A employed in a position with civil service lasting a year. A except employment with Naf. Problems a conflicting information from various pos. A. Lose map upon acceptance of employment with civil service. B. Lose map after being employed one year civil service. A non exemption of spouses employed with civil service after 1990. Why spouses were not informed before accepting positions. Effects a cafes concessions How Many spouses would accept employment after being informed properly a declining continuation of a Job the Job May impose a negative and uncomfortable environment individual is forced to stay in that position without a Choice. Please acknowledge your support concern and interest pertaining to this policy to Calden Moye 3/32 a Btry a Apo 09353. We Are deeply concerned and eager to help a Calden Moye Wiesbaden a West Germany editors note a Shirley Wehr personnel staffing specialist civilian personnel division office of the Deputy chief of staff personnel he Usa eur replies military spouse preference applies when spouses of Active duty military members of the armed forces Are relocating because of a permanent change of station pcs and Are seeking employment in the same commuting area As that of the military sponsors new duty station. Military spouse preference map applies Only to initial employment into a continuing Dod position including temporary positions of one year or longer at each duty location. Military spouses Are reminded that employment in Dod positions includes All appropriated and non appropriated find Naf work Force. Naf work Force includes cafes . Post Exchange Burger King Etc. Therefore if a military spouse accepts appropriated or Naf work Force employment on a full time part time or intermittent basis that is expected to last one year or longer or is employed for one continuous year under one or More temporary position she she is no longer eligible for military spouse preference in employment in the commuting area of his her current duty station. A military spouse May also lose preference if he she declines a valid Job offer for appropriated or non appropriated fund employment. If you have any questions Contact your local servicing civilian personnel Reader upset Over loud arc guests my family and 1 just spent a weeks vacation at the general Abrams hotel at arc Garmisch. We checked into our hotel room after driving six hours from Wiesbaden a hoping to enjoy and relax in a quiet and Beautiful atmosphere. It took us awhile our first night to get used to the surroundings and noise from the other guests checking into their rooms. The second night it got worse a people with kids running up and Down the Halls with portable radios and compact disc players. All of these events took place after the posted quiet hours of 10 . To 7 . On the third night my family and i were awakened at 12 30 . By several people from a Church group that was coming from a meeting room used by the boy scouts. I got up and asked the people very nicely to please move away from my door and Clear the hallways. The people refused to move. I then informed the night duty clerk who told me that if i wanted peace and quiet i would have to Call the maps myself or Deal with the loud noise. The maps never responded to my Call at the hotel. On the fourth night the hotel had 8-10 male soldiers in two rooms above us. At 1 ., they were on the Balcony raising hell and throwing Beer cans and other articles from the upper Balcony. Returned to the front desk to make a formal complaint to the desk clerk who called the maps. The maps responded 10 minutes later with one woman. My question is what can one female my do to 8 to 10 drunk and Rowdy soldiers on Friday morning i asked to see the manager or assistant manager to see if something could be done about the desk clerks and the inconsiderate hotel guests. The desk clerks had a negative attitude and would not go upstairs to see if they could Correct the problem. I had to give the maps and the desk clerk the two room numbers and nothing was done about the problem even after providing All important facts. The manager stated that i should move to another room. I done to think that i should have to move from a room that in a paying $50 a night for when management could have prevented this from happening in the first place. I cancelled my two remaining nights so that my pregnant wife could get a decent nights sleep in our own Home. The management refused to give us any kind of refund or adjustment on our final Bill. Arc has just lost a repeat customer. A staff sgt. Barry q. Purdie Wiesbaden West Germany editors note a James Mccrindle executive director armed forces recreation Center Europe replies arc regrets that your vacation was plagued by sleepless nights due to inconsiderate hotel guests. Unfortunately your desire for quiet relaxation and a Good nights sleep was not compatible with the late night party atmosphere that some people enjoy As part of their vacation pursuits. Obviously your frustrations were compounded by Lack of expedient and courteous attention by our hotel staff. Nonetheless you were fully within your rights to complain about a situation which arc is currently trying to rectify. According to German Law and arc hotel policy quiet hours Are to be observed from 10 . Until 7 . In addition to posting More signs that urge other guests to be considerate and comply with quiet hours arc is now in the process of hiring Security personnel who will patrol our hotel facilities to assist guests As Well As management in peacefully enforcing quiet hours. Desk clerks at the general Abrams hotel and other arc facilities will be informed by management As to polity and procedures regarding uncomfortable situations such As yours. Please accept our sincere apologies and have Faith that we re working to eliminate such unnecessary and avoidable behaviour. You indicated that you Are a repeat customer at arc. Wed like to have you Back again
