January 8 - January 14 San Diego Sector Retention Survey Good morning! Welcome to another This Week in USBP History! This week, there was a conversation on the Agents' Forum that began with a post about a retention survey that San Diego Sector has recently initiated. As that conversation progressed, a forum member asked if anyone had any information about what the Patrol was doing or planned to do to retain employees. No one had any information. Further, the consensus was that this survey would not lead to anything of value for the workforce. That sentiment is very understandable. The Patrol has done horribly on the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) for over a decade without out using those results to drive beneficial change for the workforce. To the topic of retention initiatives, several months ago, several HQ leaders, including Deputy Chief Hudak, conducted a virtual town hall... Chief Hudak answered a question about what, if anything, the Patrol was doing to retain employees. His only response was that the Patrol did not have funding for retention bonuses. Every study of which I am aware demonstrates that retention bonuses are ineffective. That throwing money at unhappy employees will not retain them, it will only prolong the inevitable. Unhappy employees are going to leave. Years ago, as part of the 5th attempt to create USBP Doctrine, the team decided that it was important to define Esprit de Corps in the USBP context. Below is that definition and pings against "morale". I think it so important that I include it in every newsletter! Esprit de Corps The workplace climate resulting from a combination of organizational pride and employee morale.
So, when I hear that employees are unhappy, morale is low or there is general disengagement, I think that the definition above is a good tool. Before something can be fixed or improved, it must be acknowledged that it is broken or lacking. Define the problem:
The FEVS shows that the workforce has been unhappy for over a decade. The most recent FEVS has CBP at 419 out of 432. The Patrol started to do something about it in 2016 with the USBP Human Capital Survey (HCS). The Patrol used the HCS to identify initiatives based on employees responses that pinged some of the stuff above. It was under the HCS that I was able to create the USBP Honorary Awards and research USBP History. But the initiatives lost momentum when Chief Provost retired. Example of the loss of momentum are evident with the Awards Program. It was transferred to HQ's Workforce Management Division and is a collateral duty assigned not to an agent, but to a professional staff employee. Based on a lack of social media posts of USBP employees receiving recognition, it appears the program is falling into disuse which means employees aren't being valued with formal recognition even though this is an important program to improve employee morale. Another example of the loss of momentum is the History Program. Although it was assigned to an Assistant Chief, I am unaware of the program conducting any research or issuing products in over two years! This is an important program to improve organizational pride. Nevertheless, I will continue to do my best to promote organizational pride by highlighting USBP History in these newsletters, the Honor First History Blog and by updating the website history pages. I will continue to promote USBP culture and employee morale by highlighting those who Uphold Honor First, and Newton-Azrak Award action anniversaries.
There's an awful lot of people being in charge, and very few people taking care of those in their charge. At the same time, the Patrol has a lot of people who are managers of the mission and very few who are stepping forward as leaders of people. Now to history! This week starts with a 1930 memo that indicates the beginnings of the Patrol's first formal training in the El Paso District. There was a gunfight in El Paso City in 1931 which included famed Patrol Inspector Charles Askins. There's a 1941 document concerning the transitioning from the Department of Labor badges to Department of Justice badges. And it was this week in 1984 the Patrol promoted its first female agent to be a Supervisory Border Patrol Agent. There are no Newton-Azrak Award action anniversaries or and anniversaries of fallen personnel this week. Have a great week! Cliff PS -
Esprit de Corps The workplace climate resulting from a combination of organizational pride and employee morale.
Esprit de corps is reinforced through the shared goals, mission and values of the organization and its employees. The definition turns Esprit de Corps into a simple formula and defines parts that comprise organizational pride and employee morale. Esprit de Corps = Organizational Pride + Employee Morale Esprit de Corps is the key to a healthy organization and engaged employees. Honor First is foundational to the Border Patrol's organizational pride and integral to its Esprit de Corps. Documents/Events 1930
Newton-Azrak Award Action Anniversaries Follow this link to see examples of USBP employees Upholding Honor First.
 The USBP Newton-Azrak Award Scroll There are no Newton-Azrak Award action anniversaries for the week. However, I would like to take the opportunity to use myself as an example of the importance of recognizing the past actions of employees.. On January 13, 2000, I was involved in a harrowing, nighttime, swift water rescue of two people (a brother and a sister). For that action, I was recognized with a $100 cash award and declared Agent of the Month. Fair to say, that should be considered an under-recognition for any employee risking their life in such a circumstance. However, at the time, it was the best those supervisors could offer. In 2018, the USBP Honorary Awards policy enabled the Patrol to correct past wrongs through the two separate sections below. In an example of the USBP valuing its workforce and upholding Honor First, my action was recognized 19 years later with the USBP Commendation with a “V” device, the Patrol’s second highest award for heroism. This was and is possible because the USBP Honorary Awards policy allows the Border Patrol to take care of its employees by recognizing past actions with the following two sections:
That was my story, how many others are there that have not been recognized? Before I retired, I actively sought every opportunity to nominate employees for USBP Honorary Awards. I found and nominated approximately 750 employees whose significant past actions were unrecognized or under-recognized. It is the responsibility of the USBP Workforce Management Division to pursue opportunities to value the workforce since they managed the USBP Honorary Awards Program. I hope that the nominations for past events that Chief Ortiz had originally rejected, which disapproved 370 employees from receiving USBP Honorary Awards, are moving forward. See this blog where I commend Chief Ortiz for having the strength to change his decision, and for providing an example of valuing the workforce that should be emulated in the sectors.  U.S. Border Patrol Badge with a Mourning Band USBP Fallen As of December 7, 2022, the U.S. Border Patrol has suffered 153* fallen. Titles:
The names that appear below hold a place of honor. They have made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to fulfill the oath each officer took to protect and defend the United States of America. The facts regarding each officer are presented without major editing of the "language of the day" found in the reports detailing the circumstances of each event. This is done to provide the reader an association with historical timeframes. Employees who died in the line of duty due to being exposed to deadly illnesses will not have the cause of death listed. I will note that Border Patrol Agent John Charles Gigax is not recognized as officially fallen by Customs and Border Protection or the U.S. Border Patrol. The Border Patrol Foundation and the Border Patrol Museum also fail to recognize him. He is remembered by all except organizations containing "Border Patrol" in their title. He is remembered by the:
The U.S. Border Patrol, the Border Patrol Foundation, and the Border Patrol Museum should fix their oversight. HonorFirst.com remembers and lists Agent Gigax among the fallen.  Fallen Border Patrol Agent John Charles Gigax's tombstone. Fallen Border Patrol Agent Jason C. Panides' tombstone in is the background. There are no anniversaries of fallen USBP personnel for the week.
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