Summary The employee will serve as a Telephone Operator for the Health Administration Service at the Fargo VA Health Care System (Medical Center), located in Fargo, ND. Responsibilities THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION Duties include, but are not limited to the following: Determine proper routing of phone calls. Knowledge of the organizational structure of the Medical Center. Handle a variety of difficult calls, requiring personal involvement. Must place outgoing toll calls charged to the Medical Center, and accurately record time, charges, and other pertinent information. Must be totally familiar with the contents of the Medical Center's Safety and Fire Regulations, in that the operator's responsibilities include dealing with threatening telephone calls, bomb threats, fire alarms, tornado warnings, or other unexpected emergencies, such as a Code Blue. Sorts all incoming mail on weekends and holidays for distribution to patients. Maintains all lost and found items, and makes proper recordings of items received and returned in the log book. Incumbent must converse with all callers, directing them to the appropriate department and visitors to the appropriate location/or service. Operates a Digital Branch Exchange (DBX) console in conjunction with the station automatic exchange, establishes communications between Medical Center and the public. Receives and places local, long distance, and international calls. Operates a paging system, public address system, and radio communications system. Addresses alarms (fire, Code Blue, behavioral emergencies, bomb threats, etc.) immediately. Interviews incoming calls to determine proper routing of the call. Maintains a log of all commercial long distance and collect calls charged to the Medical Center. Keeps current information regarding facility telephone numbers and maintains current list of pager numbers assigned to employees authorized pagers. Monitors several emergency alarms (e.g., pharmacy, boiler plant, intensive care unit, humidistat, phone system, elevators). Converses with all callers and visitors, directing to appropriate department/location/or service. Maintains lost and found items, recording items received and returned in a logbook. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Telephone Operator/PD40213A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required. Bargaining Unit Position: No. The VA Midwest Health Care Network advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the @context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 You may be required to serve a probationary/trial period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/02/2025. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: General Experience: To qualify for this position, you must possess one (1) year of general experience. General experience is progressively responsible clerical, office, or other work that indicates ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position to be filled (Telephone Operator). This may be paid or non-paid experience. NOTE: Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. Examples of general experience would typically include, but are not limited to: providing customer service to internal and external customers; verbal and written communication; computer; and administrative skills. OR, Education: Two (2) years of successfully completed education above the high school level in any field for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college, or university. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted on or before the closing date of the announcement. Education cannot be credited without documentation. Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have two years of education above high school (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). OR, Combination: An equivalent combination of successfully completed post-high school education and experience as described above which meets the total qualification requirements for this grade level. NOTE: Your experience must be documented in your resume and transcripts must be submitted on or before the closing date of the announcement. Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Communication Hardware Technical Credibility Veteran and Customer Focus Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is usually sedentary but may involve some standing and walking to consult directories and manuals. Work involves making sound judgement when interacting with Veterans, families, professional staff, co-workers, outside agencies, etc., which at times may be distraught or abusive; and when operating the telephone system and multiple alarms systems that need to be addressed immediately and in an accurate and reliable method. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
