Dear Members,
This will be a short one today given that I sent a message last week. I want to get back on our regular schedule and take the opportunity to remind you about a few things going on:
PAFSO Breakfast on the Future of FS Careers at GAC on Monday, 23 February at 0800
Please don’t forget to register for the PAFSO breakfast with Antoine Chevrier, GAC’s Assistant Deputy Minister for Human Resources, and Ann Flanagan Whalen, Director General for Assignments, Performance, and Talent Management. We’ll start bright and early on Monday, 23 February at 0800 Ottawa time. This will be an important opportunity to hear the Employer’s perspective on what Foreign Service careers will look like at GAC after the implementation of the CER, and will be especially useful to those of us who are facing important decisions about voluntary departure. It promises to be a lively discussion, and I encourage you to register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/swfRTp8EQUGS91XH2PG9jg
Canadian Diplomatic Family Network (CDFN) Online Members’ Café
CDFN has invited all PAFSO members and their spouses to join them at their on-line café Wednesday, February 25, noon – 1:00 pm. More information about the event and the sign-in details are available here. We hope that many of you will join to hear Olya Shumylo, a psychologist and researcher specializing in diplomatic spouses & partners and diplomatic couples. Her research includes first posting adjustment, spousal contributions to diplomatic service, and financial dependency in diplomatic families.
Black History Month
This year’s Black History Month theme is “30 Years of Black History Month: Honouring Black Brilliance Across Generations — From Nation Builders to Tomorrow’s Visionaries.” and I encourage you to check out the many inspiring stories collected by Library and Archives Canada here.
If you’re in Ottawa, please also consider attending the closing celebrations on Parliament Hill, which will celebrate the achievements of Black women on Friday, February 27 from 530 pm. You can register for the event at the link.
C.J. Scott Memorial Award in International Relations and Diplomacy
This month’s Black Heritage month theme has been framed as celebrating “Black brilliance across generations,” which makes an excellent connection to our collective efforts to honour and remember our colleague, CJ Scott. If you would like to make a concrete contribution to supporting Black scholarship, please consider donating to the scholarship. Please also encourage Black undergraduate students at Carleton University entering or continuing in any degree program within the Faculty of Public and Global Affairs to apply here before February 25, 2026. You can help us by sharing this information with anyone you think may be eligible. The award is valued at $1,000.
PAFSO Insurance Program
Finally, the PAFSO Insurance Committee has asked me to remind everyone of the programs available to members. Members can take advantage of member discounts with Service Plus, specialized home and auto insurance for foreign service members, and PAFSO’s own life insurance program. Please visit PAFSO programs for more information.
We’re continuing to update our WFA information on our website including on the members’ section. As always, should you have any other concerns at work, do not hesitate to reach out to us. That’s what we’re here for. Are you having issues with your pay? Do you feel harassed or discriminated against? Do you have a grievance or a staffing complaint? Or do you just want some clarifications on our collective agreement or the FSDs? Whatever the case, PAFSO is here for you. Just send us an email with your name, department and a detailed description of your concerns. You can click here to learn more about all the member services PAFSO has to offer. For anything and everything else, please send us an email at info@pafso.com and we will get back to you as soon as we can.
Until next time, take care of yourselves and each other.