Summary This position is located at the Fort Mitchell National Cemetery in Ft. Mitchell, Alabama. Responsibilities The incumbent of this position serves as the Foreman for the Field Section at the Fort Mitchell National Cemetery. The incumbent has supervisory responsibility for all field operations to include Facilities Maintenance, Grounds Maintenance, and Interment Operations. Incumbent will also act as alternate Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) as required to provide oversight of numerous contractors and to ensure the completion of those contracted tasks. Personally, or through work leaders, motivates subordinates to operate as an effective working unit. Incumbent may be temporarily assigned to represent the cemetery at station events and will perform other duties as assigned. Facilities Maintenance: Provides direction and supervision of personnel performing facilities maintenance tasks in accordance with National Cemetery Administration Operational Standards and Measures, NCA Regulations, SEO and local station policies including equipment and vehicle maintenance, tool control and acting as COR for any contracted facilities maintenance functions. Grounds Keeping Operations: Provides direction and supervision of personnel performing grounds keeping tasks in accordance with National Cemetery Administration Operational Standards and Measures, NCA Regulations, SEO and local station policies including mowing, trimming and edging, fertilization, seasonal maintenance, gardening, pruning, and maintenance of planting beds, and acting as COR for any contracted grounds keeping functions. Interment Operations: Provides direction and supervision for personnel performing interment operations in accordance with National Cemetery Administration Operational Standards and Measures. NCA Regulations, SEO and local station policies including layout and establishing of new gravesites; supervising opening and closing of graves; ensure operators properly backfill and tamp each gravesite to achieve proper compaction: ensuring and verifying correct placement of casketed and cremated remains in the correct gravesite or niche. Also responsible for supervising the receiving and inspecting of headstones and markers and ensuring timely installation on correct gravesites or niches as well as recurring maintenance of headstones and markers, repairing of damaged graves and acting as COR for any contracted interment operation functions (Headstone/Niche Cover inscription/setting). Ensures interment operations are carried out in accordance with National Cemetery Administration policies and guidelines. Work schedule: May be required to work Monday through Friday to include occasional weekends. Due to the mission of the National Cemetery, the cemetery cannot be closed for more than 2 consecutive days at any given time. Additionally, when a Federal holiday falls on a Monday or Friday, staff may be required to work on that holiday or a Saturday. All staff is required to work Memorial Day each year. Staff will be required to work overtime, weekends and holidays when necessary to meet the needs of the cemetery. Occasionally staff may be called back to the facility to perform emergency overtime work. Compressed/Flexible Schedule: Not Available Not Available Position Description Title/PD#: Cemetery Caretaker Supervisor/ PD1604780 The full performance level of this position is WS - 08. Relocation Expenses: Not Authorized Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement,09/18/2025. Candidates must demonstrate the potential to supervise work related to landscaping, groundskeeping, or related trades, including the use of hand tools, power tools, and the safe operation of machinery and equipment used in cemetery caretaking. Evidence of this potential can be shown through work, training, or education that establishes proficiency in these tasks. EXPERIENCE: A specific length of training and experience is not required, but you must show evidence of training or experience of sufficient scope and quality of your ability to do the work of this position. Evidence which demonstrates you possess the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the duties of this position must be supported by detailed descriptions of such on your resume. Applicants will be rated in accordance with the OPM Qualification Standard Handbook X-118C ( www.opm.gov/qualifications/x-118c). SCREEN-OUT ELEMENT: Your qualifications will first be evaluated against the prescribed screen out element, which usually appears as question 1 in the on-line questionnaire. Those applicants who appear to possess at least the minimal acceptable qualification requirement are considered for further rating; those who do not are rated ineligible and are eliminated. The potential eligibles are then rated against the remainder of the Job Elements. The screen-out element(s) for this position are/is: Ability to do the job without more than normal supervision. Must possess and maintain a valid state driver's license. JOB ELEMENTS: Those who meet the minimum level of experience and training for the screen-out element will then be evaluated in each of the following job elements: Drive Safely Interpret Instructions, Specifications (includes blueprint reading) Lead or Supervise Technical Practices Work Practices 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: This position requires heavy physical effort with reaching, bending, turning, and moving hands, arms, feet and legs to operate the different sets of controls while operating the equipment and attachments. The Incumbent may be subjected to considerable strain caused by vibration, jerking, and jolting of the equipment over rough surfaces and the need to operate controls in awkward positions. Heavy effort is frequently exercised when performing duties such as tamping, carrying caskets/urns, lifting/moving grave planks, setting headstones, etc. Incumbent must be able to walk on hilly, flat, or rolling terrain. This position requires the employee to life weights up to 50 lbs. Occasionally items weighing more than 50 lbs are lifted with assistance from co-works. Employee may be exposed to noise levels exceeding 85 dBA for up to eight (8) hours per day. This exposure may adversely affect hearing. Working Conditions: Work must be performed outdoors, and incumbent will be exposed to all @types of weather throughout the year. Incumbent will be exposed to the sun, noise, extreme hear, and humidity, cold, snow, rain, wind, and is subject to dirt, dust, fumes (from motor and exhaust) mud, and water. Work is performed in areas where pesticides, insecticides, and fertilizers are applied. Appropriate protective equipment will be worn. The operator is exposed to injury from mishaps that may be involved in the operation of grounds maintenance equipment. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drugs use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Education Additional Information Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. 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. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.
