My New Years resolution is to not make a New Years resolution. I believe New Years resolutions are just something that go in one Year and out the other!
If you are free to celebrate as you choose, thank a soldier. Please don’t drink and drive!
Ms Sparky
Tamimi 1, KBR 0David Isenberg
Author, Shadow Force: Private Security Contractors in Iraq (Praeger Security International)
I couldn’t let 2010 end without having one last look at one of the major U.S.-based PMCs; the one which, according to one leading PMC trade association, plays a significant role in keeping U.S. troops the best supported military operation in human history.
In case you couldn’t guess that would be KBR. Today’s news informs us that a KBR subcontractor, Tamimi Global Co., based in Saudi Arabia, has won a $35 million arbitration award in London against KBR for work it says it did in Iraq.
Tamimi provided dining and food services for U.S. troops. The company claims KBR withheld payments starting in 2008 because the US government withheld payments to KBR after an audit of an earlier contract. Tamimi continued to operate through 2009, when its contracts with KBR ended.
You can find the relevant legal documents on the ever watchful site of Ms. Sparky at:
The background is a bit complicated, so read the procedural history in the Final Award document if you are interested. But basically it comes down to the fact that in 2006 the U.S. government audited certain costs submitted by KBR to the U.S. government for which the government had reimbursed KBR, to determine if the costs claimed by KBR were reasonable.. The Defense Contract Audit Agency issued a report that determined that KBR’s costs resulting from Tamimi invoices from July through December 2004 were unreasonably high and thus KBR breached it fiduciary responsibility to the U.S. government.
KBR notified Tamimi that the government was withholding about $41 million from KBR and, in turn, KBR would withhold about $35 million from Tamimi.
Note that KBR did not assert Tamimi did anything wrong. It simply says that if the U.S. government does not pay it then it has no obligation to pay its subcontractors. This is known as the Pay-When-Paid clause. Specifically:
“Notwithstanding any other provision hereof, payment by [Government] to [KBR] is a condition precedent to any obligation of [KBR] to make payment hereunder; [KBR] shall have no obligation to make payment to [Tamimi] for any portion of sublet work for which [KBR] has not received payment from the [Government].”
Obviously, judging by the decision the arbitrators did not agree with KBR. But the important point I take away from this is that the relationship between a prime contractor and its subcontractors, is often, to quote Winston Churchill, “a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” (read original article HERE)
Head on over to Amazon.com and take a look at David’s book Shadow Force: Private Security Contractors in Iraq (Praeger Security International)
DynCorp Employee Honored for Heroic Efforts in AfghanistanPosted by John Adams on December 29, 2010
Govconwire.com
DynCorp International police trainer James Boyd will be recognized in the “100 Faces of War Experience” portrait in honor of his actions during an insurgent attack on his outpost in Afghanistan earlier this year.
While embedded with the U.S. military, Boyd’s outpost came under fire from a group of insurgents. Boyd repeatedly braved bullets and bombs, scrambling back-and-forth across the compound to get medical bags and stretchers, lend aid and supported the team working to keep the enemy from breaching the compound wall.
According to the firm, “Boyd has supported efforts to train the Afghan border police under DI’s contract with the Department of State’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) since Nov. 2009.”
“The civilian police mentors and trainers that we have working in Afghanistan and around the world exhibit quiet acts of heroism every day,” said Don Ryder, DI vice president of the company’s training, mentoring and security programs. “James’ dedication to the mission and to helping others is a great example of the selfless contributions being made by those deployed overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq. It is fitting that he will be honored in this exhibit.”
“A lot of people have asked about my efforts that day,” Boyd said. “I’m a trained police officer and when something like this happens, while most people react by running away from danger, we are trained to run toward it and see how we can help. That is what I did.” (Read the rest of the story here…)
Lawyer Says Dallas Woman Sued Halliburton After She Violated “Policy Against Procreation”
A Dallas woman filed suit against Halliburton last week claiming she was fired after her supervisors learned she was pregnant. In court documents filed on December, 21, Lynda Darden alleges she was fired in the summer of 2009 when “she was sexually discriminated against and terminated as a result of her pregnancy.” Per the court docs, which indicate Darden was hired in Colorado and then transferred to Texas:
“In 2008, she was transferred to Texas and worked as an administrative associate in the dispatch office at the Alvarado Camp. Although a good, dedicated and productive employee, she was terminated on June 3, 2009, when she apparently violated the company’s policy against procreation.”
If you detect a hint of snark in that wording, you’re picking up what Darden’s attorney, Todd Kelly, is putting down: He’s become high-profile in recent years for suing the energy contractor. (Read the rest of the story here…)
On December 9, Wackenhut Services, LLC (WSLLC) President David W. Foley sent a letter to the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office and informed them that:
On November 29, 2010, we discovered that certain hard drives shipped from our office in Iraq were stolen in transit to out US offices along with other office equipment. After investigation, on November 30, 2010 we determined, to the best of our knowledge, that the stolen hard drives contained personal information of certain of our past employees. Based on our investigation, we believe that the stolen hard drives contained the following unencrypted personal information of our past employees: (i) first and last names, (ii) social security numbers, (iii) passport numbers, (iv) last known home addresses and (v) date of birth and place of birth.
On December 13, 2010 WSLLC notified each of the affected personnel via the US Postal Service to inform them of the breach. They were offered a one year subscription to ConsumerInfo.com credit monitoring service and some advice on how to best protect their credit.
Wackenhut was the primary provider of fire protection services at FOB’s/COB’s in Iraq from 2004 until they lost the contract in Nov 2010. The loss of the contract would account for the reason the hard drives and office equipment was being shipped back to the states. That’s six years worth of employee information on those hard drives. We could easily be talking about 10,000 affected employees.
I’ve contacted WSLLC for answers to specific questions and asked if they would like to make a statement regarding this incident. As of the publishing of this post I have yet to received a response from them.
Wackenhut is not the first company to lose control of it’s employees personal information. A an employee of joint Venture Stanley Baker Hill (SBH) and DAAR published and distributed the names and social security of 269 employees working in Iraq and elsewhere. SBH was the contractor awarded the task of electrical inspections in Iraq for Task Force SAFE. They have since been replaced Versar International Inc.. Many victims on this list were employees of the individual companies in Iraq and elsewhere and had no association with the SBH joint venture. I believe the four individual companies of Stanley Consutants, Michael Baker Corporation, Hill International, or DAAR Engineering still have US Government contracts. At the time of that posting SHB still had not officially notified everyone on the list. Many found out about the breach after reading the article on MsSparky.com. I do not believe SBH ever contacted any State Attorney General’s office.
If you have more information regarding the Wackenhut information breach, please us know.
Ms Sparky
This contract award to Fluor was just announced. I don’t know much about it other than it’s not LOGCAP. If anyone can fill us in that would be great! I’d like to know who the seven bidders were are. ~Ms Sparky
Fluor Intercontinental, Inc., Greenville, S.C., was awarded on Dec. 23 a $21,059,732 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. The award will provide life support services for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Gulf Region District. Work will be completed in Iraq, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2012. The bid was solicited through the Internet with seven bids received. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Middle East District, Winchester, Va., is the contracting activity (W912ER-11-C-0011).
This just came out from Dyncorp. My most sincere condolences to his friends, family and co-workers. ~Ms Sparky
DynCorp International LOGCAP Team Member Killed in Kandahar Rocket Attack
December 27, 2010 – We are deeply saddened to report that LOGCAP team member Kevin Davis died from injuries sustained during a rocket attack in Kandahar, Afghanistan, on December 25.
Kevin, 40, of Missouri City, Texas, joined DI on September 30, 2010, to support the U.S. Army Logistics Civil Augmentation Program (LOGCAP) contract.
DI CEO Steve Gaffney acknowledged Kevin’s dedication to the mission and expressed condolences on the tragic loss saying, “Kevin lived and worked in a warzone to help support our troops – that kind of selfless courage is remarkable but too often goes unrecognized until the unthinkable happens. Kevin’s service to our military was heroic and our thoughts and prayers are with his friends and family during this difficult time.”
The DI family extends deepest condolences to all of Kevin’s loved ones and to the entire LOGCAP team.
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