VACANCY: British Embassy recruiting Honorary Consul Koh Samui

[webfact]

Vacancy - BK - Honorary Consul (Koh Samui, Thailand)

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer.  We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow.

 

Job Category  

Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Consular Roles)

 

Job Subcategory  

Consular

 

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)  

Honorary Consuls are volunteers who provide a valuable service offering emergency Consular assistance to people who find themselves in difficulty overseas. The FCO Consular Strategy 2016-2020 outlines our mandate to provide professional and tailored assistance to British Nationals when they most need our help, including in times of crisis.

 

Honorary Consuls are generally people of good standing in the local community and ideally have a strong network of local contacts and preferably, although not essentially, a British national.

 

The job holder will work closely with the busy Consular team in Bangkok, providing friendly and efficient emergency consular assistance in Koh Samui and its surrounding area as necessary.

 

This is a voluntary position with no salary attached; however an Honorarium payment will be awarded every financial year. An Honorary Consul should work on average no more than 4 hours per week.  

 

The successful jobholder will be supervised by the British Embassy in Bangkok who may ask the jobholder to assist with the following:

• Offer assistance in consular emergencies such as visiting British Nationals in hospital following illness, assault or accident, or in detention following their arrest.
• Respond immediately to a large scale incident (e.g. road/air/rail/boat accident, serious fire, and natural disaster) by seeking information from local authorities about any British casualties, and establishing the scale of the situation and then reporting back to the Embassy.
• In the case of the death of a British National, you may be asked to provide assistance to family members.
• Build and maintain good working relationships with key local contacts such as hospitals, courts, local police and tourist police, airports, social services, prisons, voluntary organizations etc.
• On behalf of the Embassy, help with the organisation of visits to Koh Samui, especially when the HMA, British Embassy staff, and British delegations’ visit the area.
• Speak on behalf of the British Embassy Bangkok when requested to do so.
• Solve problems creatively and promptly within FCO Consular policy guidance
•  

Essential qualifications, skills and experience  

• Fluent spoken and writen English is essential
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to deliver difficult messages with empathy
• Presentation Skills; ability to speak on behalf of the British Embassy Bangkok when requested to do so
• Excellent customer service skills and ability to work in a multitude of working environments
• A passion for helping people in distress
• Good prioritisation skills
• Competent user of IT packages, including Microsoft Office
• Good local knowledge of Koh Samui and the region
• Good knowledge of Thai local authorities
•  

Desirable qualifications, skills and experience  

• Experience of working with distressed people
• Knowledge of spoken Thai would be beneficial
•  

Required competencies  

Changing and Improving, Making Effective Decisions, Leading and Communicating, Collaborating and Partnering, Managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace

 

Application deadline  

14 January 2018

 

Type of Position  

Fixed Term

 

Working hours per week  

average of 4 hours work a week

 

Duration of Post  

24 months

 

Region  

Asia Pacific

 

Country/Territory  

Thailand

 

Location (City)  

Bangkok

 

Type of Post  

British Embassy

Number of vacancies  

1

 

Starting yearly salary (GBP)  

Honorarium

 

Start Date  

26 February 2018

 

End Date  

25 February 2020

 

Other benefits and conditions of employment  

The jobholder will be expected to complete a series of training packages, including some classroom-based workshops/ conferences.

An induction checklist will need to be completed within a month of appointment.

 

Please note that some volunteering is considered ‘work’ in Thailand, so a work permit/visa may be required. 

 

The appointment is subject to successful clearance of pre-employment and security checks. Staff who are locally recruited by the British Embassy are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law.

 

No accommodation or relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position. You must have or be able to obtain work authorisation in Thailand in order to apply. Any costs related to obtaining or renewing permits and visas are the responsibility of the successful applicant.

 

Additional information  

 

All applications must be received before 23:55 on 14 January 2018

 

Please send your cover letter and current CV to [email protected]. We regret to advise that we will only be contacting short-listed candidates. Applicants called for an interview will be assessed on the core competencies listed above.

 

Interviews for this position are targeted to commence on 25 and 26 of January 2018. 

 

Source: https://fco.tal.net/vx/lang-en-GB/mobile-0/appcentre-1/brand-2/xf-f50a1a2bffab/candidate/so/pm/4/pl/1/opp/4935-BK-Honorary-Consul-Koh-Samui-Thailand/en-GB

[Jane Dough]

Sorry, too busy playing tennis and quaffing Pimms...even if that does make me ideally suited for the job. 

[Gillyflower]

That's a hell of a lot of requirements for no money.

 

I was rather tickled over the.....

 

Fluent spoken and written English is essential. 

 

There is a spelling mistake!

[VBF]

8 hours ago, car720 said:

No thanks.  Too busy and I don 't work for free.

Especially given....... No accommodation or relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position. You must have or be able to obtain work authorisation in Thailand in order to apply. Any costs related to obtaining or renewing permits and visas are the responsibility of the successful applicant.

They're 'avin' a larf, innit! 

[lonewolf99]

There will be someone out there with their own over inflated ego that would love to strut around with this title.

Similar to dressing up as a local (volunteer) policeman............

 

[the guest]

Quote "The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer.  We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow." 

 

Unfortunately the UK does discriminates all the time, you only have to look at the BBC who positively discriminates against whites in favour of the ethnic kind. 

 

British government only accepts lefty liberalites, who have no interest in furthering the interest of the country. Candidates should be self-centered middle or upper class, live in a bubble constituency, and have no interest in the working class.

[champers]

Do you get to wear a silly hat?

[colinneil]

I was going to apply, but no charging points for my scooter.

A good job for ole Steven100, he would fit in quite well when sucking up to the government officials.

 

 

 

Sorry Steven couldnt resist.

Edited January 11, 2018 by colinneil

[baansgr]

Surprised at the comments so far.

"An Honorarium payment will be awarded every financial year"

For a long term resident of Samui and the area giving up 4 hours a week to help UK Nationals isn't about an inflated ego, its more  a case of genuine generosity . I have met guys that have felt privileged to do this and really are sincere in what they did. Good luck to all applicants and congrats for the successful one.

[Just Weird]

21 hours ago, VBF said:

Especially given....... No accommodation or relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position. You must have or be able to obtain work authorisation in Thailand in order to apply. Any costs related to obtaining or renewing permits and visas are the responsibility of the successful applicant.

They're 'avin' a larf, innit! 

They're just ensuring that they get no applications from no-hoper Thaivisa members.

[lonewolf99]

4 hours ago, champers said:

Do you get to wear a silly hat?

Someone holding a UK Passport from central England might turn up in one of these.....not beyond the realms of possibility.

 

[South]

4 hours ago, baansgr said:

Surprised at the comments so far.

"An Honorarium payment will be awarded every financial year"

For a long term resident of Samui and the area giving up 4 hours a week to help UK Nationals isn't about an inflated ego, its more  a case of genuine generosity . I have met guys that have felt privileged to do this and really are sincere in what they did. Good luck to all applicants and congrats for the successful one.

You honestly think you would be giving up just 4 hours a week? I'd think again if I were you. Genuine generosity, maybe. Feeling privileged, maybe. Being taken for a ride, most definitely.

 

Consider just one death - by the time you have consoled the bereaved/family, worked with the relevant hospitals, organized transfer of the body to Nathon and then repatriation, co-ordinated with the police and a host of other things not including your own personal traveling and time doing paperwork etc and you will soon find that 4 hours is nowhere near enough time to do all of that. Then add to that all the drunks  and other assorted idiots et al who end up behind bars or whatever on a pretty much daily basis and the thought of working just 4 hours a week (for free!) very quickly becomes nothing but a distant dream.

 

Thanks, but no thanks.

[baansgr]

2 hours ago, South said:

You honestly think you would be giving up just 4 hours a week? I'd think again if I were you. Genuine generosity, maybe. Feeling privileged, maybe. Being taken for a ride, most definitely.

 

Consider just one death - by the time you have consoled the bereaved/family, worked with the relevant hospitals, organized transfer of the body to Nathon and then repatriation, co-ordinated with the police and a host of other things not including your own personal traveling and time doing paperwork etc and you will soon find that 4 hours is nowhere near enough time to do all of that. Then add to that all the drunks  and other assorted idiots et al who end up behind bars or whatever on a pretty much daily basis and the thought of working just 4 hours a week (for free!) very quickly becomes nothing but a distant dream.

 

Thanks, but no thanks.

Yes of course it could equat to more time. If its not for you ok, lets just hope you are never in a situation where you require the assistance of this person. 

[South]

11 hours ago, baansgr said:

Yes of course it could equat to more time. If its not for you ok, lets just hope you are never in a situation where you require the assistance of this person. 

I've been on both sides, believe me.

[wakeupplease]

On 1/11/2018 at 6:16 AM, colinneil said:

I was going to apply, but no charging points for my scooter.

A good job for ole Steven100, he would fit in quite well when sucking up to the government officials.

 

 

 

Sorry Steven couldnt resist.

Steven is a Thai or had you not worked that out yet?

[Sir Dude]

Soirees on the lawn? Lashings of gin & tonic? Anyone for tennis?....Doing little or no work as you are not instructed to help any UK citizens unless they die. I'm in.

Edited January 18, 2018 by Sir Dude