Report Contents
What OIG Inspected
OIG inspected the Office of Safety, Health, and Environmental Management, which is located under the Directorate of Operations, in the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations.
What OIG Recommends
OIG made 11 recommendations to the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations.
In its comments on the draft report, the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations concurred with 10 recommendations and neither agreed nor disagreed with 1 recommendation. OIG considers all 11 recommendations resolved. The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations’ response to each recommendation, and OIG’s reply, can be found in the Recommendations section of this report. The bureau’s formal written response is reprinted in its entirety in Appendix B.
What OIG Found
- The Office of Safety, Health, and Environmental Management made progress in reducing safety risks to Department of State (Department) employees and family members. Fatalities and injuries associated with motor vehicle operations, carbon monoxide, pesticides, and swimming pools have declined since the introduction of special safety programs in these areas.
- Nonetheless, from 2014 to 2020, the Department reported 6,214 mishaps that resulted in 65 fatalities, 442 hospitalizations, 27,983 lost workdays, and $26.1 million in property damage.
- Ninety-three percent of overseas posts did not fully complete or enter a safety certification for all residences in the Post Occupational Safety and Health Officer Certification Application Database, as required.
- The office improved its database tracking residential safety certifications, but additional corrective actions were needed to resolve other database limitations.
- Database limitations prevented tracking of overseas posts’ noncompliance with nonresidential safety standards.
- The office had outdated, inaccurate, and incomplete guidance governing its programs
Report Terms
Report Recommendations
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, in coordination with the Bureaus of African Affairs, East Asian and Pacific Affairs, European and Eurasian Affairs, Near Eastern Affairs, South and Central Asian Affairs, and Western Hemisphere Affairs, should require post occupational safety and health officers to complete all outstanding residential safety certifications in the Post Occupational Safety and Health Certification Application database in accordance with Department standards.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations should correct all limitations in the Post Occupational Safety and Health Officer Certification Application database to fully monitor overseas posts’ compliance with Department residential safety standards.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations should correct all database limitations in its Real Property Application and Post Occupational Safety and Health Officer Certification Application databases to fully monitor overseas posts’ compliance with Department nonresidential safety standards.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, in coordination with the Bureaus of European and Eurasian Affairs, Near Eastern Affairs, and Western Hemisphere Affairs, should bring principal officer residential swimming pools at Embassies Cairo, Madrid, and Quito, and Consulate General Hamilton into compliance with Department swimming pool safety standards.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, in coordination with the Bureau of Administration, should mandate the use of the Fleet Management Information System to track overseas posts’ compliance with Department motor vehicle safety standards.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, in coordination with the Bureau of Administration, should review and update Foreign Affairs Manual standards governing the Department’s Safety, Health, and Environmental Management program abroad.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, in coordination with the Office of the Legal Adviser, should evaluate whether reporting mishaps involving personal use of personally owned vehicles of U.S. direct-hire staff should be required.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations should develop and implement a training program incorporating training objectives and materials for safety orientations and safety training for all employees at overseas posts.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations should develop and implement procedures to regularly update the content of the Office of Safety, Health, and Environmental Management SharePoint site.
The Bureau of Overseas Building Operations should develop and implement records and information life cycle management standard operating procedures for the Office of Safety, Health, and Environmental Management in accordance with Department standards.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, in coordination with the Bureau of Information Resource Management and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, should obtain an authorization to operate the DriveCam system, in accordance with Department standards.