Department of Conferences and Meetings Management August, 2013 RESOLUTION CP/RES. 982 (1797/11) UPDATE OF COSTS OF CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS FUNDED BY THE OAS

Contents Resolution approval Mandate Current rates New meeting costs and rates Reasons for update of rates Cost comparison Recommendations

Approval of Resolution CP/RES.982 The OAS Permanent Council approved resolution CP/RES.982 on March 30, 2011 mandating new rates for conference services. The new rates are in effect since July 1, 2011.

Mandate of Resolution CP/RES.982 “10.To instruct the General Secretariat to review the costs outlined in operative paragraph 8 of this resolution every two years, and to report to the Permanent Council, before November 30 of the review year, on whether they should be updated. Updated figures shall then be incorporated into the budgeting system, and the various areas, entities, and organs of the Organization shall take them into account when estimating the costs of their meetings and conferences.”

Current Rates for Conference Services Services per dayCurrent Rate US$ Interpretation (6 hours shift)$ Translation$ Room Assistant$ Control Operator$ Equipment, materials and coffee $350.00

Reasons for an Update of Rates In order to comply with the mandate of resolution CP/RES.982 and to keep the OAS competitive with other Washington D.C. based international organizations that are paying higher rates to translators and interpreters, it is important not only to revise our rates periodically but to offer updated rates to maintain high quality language services (interpretation and translation). Cost of living in the Washington D.C. area increased 3.02% during the last couple of years.

Cost Comparison between the OAS and Other International Organizations for Interpretation Services in 2013 ORGANIZATION GROSS RATE WORK HOURS % GAP OAS OAS$ hours IADB (August, 2013)$ hours14.55% World Bank (July, 2013)$ hours12.73% IMF (July, 2013)$ hours20.00% PAHO (with a 25% tax reimbursement)$ hours14.18% U.S. State Department (August, 2013)$630.00*8 hours14.55% United Nations (August, 2013)$ hours16.18% CSI – Conference Systems Inc.$ hours80.00% American Language Services$ hours20.00% * U.S. State Department pays a higher rate to the team leader

Cost Comparison between the OAS and Other International Organizations for Translation Services per Word in 2013 ORGANIZATION RATE PER WORD OAS$0.19 PAHO$0.19 World Bank$0.20 IMF$0.17 U.S. State Dept.$0.19

Rate Changes for Contracts CP/RES.982 SERVICES Current Rates 2011 Proposed Rates 2014 Change$USIncrease% Interpretation Services$550.00$570.00$ % Translation Services p/day$450.00$460.00$ % Translation Services p/word$0.19$0.20$ % Translation Services p/1000 words$190.00$200.00$ % Room Assistants$130.00$135.00$ % Control Operators$130.00$135.00$ % Overtime $38.00$40.00 $ %

Translation Services per day and Room Services Adjusted by the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumer (CPI-U) of Washington D.C. – Baltimore Services Current Rate CPI–U Proposed adjustment based on CPI-U % Change US$ Change Translation p/day $ %$ %$10.00 Interpretation p/day$ %$ %$20.00 Room Services$ %$ %$5.00

Updated Costs per Meeting for 2014 at Headquarters and Away from HQ SERVICES Current Rates 2011 Proposed Rates 2014 Change$USChange% 1-day meeting $18,685$19,265$ % 2-day meeting $33,558$34,741$1, % 3-day meeting a $48,379$50,165$1, %

Recommendations Procurar programar reuniones de manera tal que los equipos de interpretación puedan ser compartidos ente reuniones que se lleven a cabo en un mismo día; Respetar el calendario de reuniones con el fin de evitar cancelaciones o reasignaciones de último minuto tanto de intérpretes, como de asistentes de sala y operadores de controles; Limitar la extensión de los documentos a ser traducidos; Procurar puntualidad para evitar el pago de horas extras; Respetar las reglas de procedimientos; Limitar al máximo las excepciones; Limitar los servicios de interpretación para las reuniones informales y grupos de trabajo.

Recommendations Consider obtaining the services of a precision writer/editor to correct and summarize your original documents before sending them to translators. This will save funds and provide better written documents for your meeting. Please comply with the guidelines for holding eco-friendly meetings in order to minimize the negative impact on the environment when holding OAS meetings. Please refer to the “Guide to Holding Eco-Friendly Conferences and Meetings.”

Where to Get More Information CP/RES Update of Costs of Conferences and Meetings Funded by the OAS Guide to Holding Eco-Friendly Conferences and Meetings

Thank You!