How To Write Contracts

Commenter Will Hettchen writes the following:

You have a note that if contractors don't follow "cultural standards" that their contracts should not be renewed. That seems a little vague for contract language or selection criteria. While I don't condone the reported behavior, I am not sure we have all the facts on what happened. I want to hold contractors to the terms of their contract - no more and no less. If we start throwing vague standards of cultural sensitivity, then we make the contractor selection process more arbitrary, not less. If I was in charge of monitoring that contract, the issue I would focus on is the report of 14 hour shifts. If those were a frequent occurrance the contractor should have been asked to correct that per the terms of their contract. Off-duty drinking parties may be offensive, but I'm not sure how you write contracts demanding that the contractor only hire confirmed saints.

I agree with most of the sentiments here, with a few exceptions.

1) There are cultural norms, and then there are cultural norms. I don't necessarily think that contractors should have to assimilate perfectly, everywhere. But when they're guarding diplomats, who are attempting, as a very basic part of their mission, not to offend the sensitivities of the people they work with, I think that having some basic rules governing the most important cultural norms that need to be observed is a reasonable part of a contract, especially in places where violating them could egregiously damage the diplomatic mission.

2) Contractors don't have to be saints. But they should have to abide by basic rules about hazing and harassment.