Summary This vacancy announcement is open ONLY to current, permanent Des Moines, VBA HRC Office employees and current/former VA employees who are CTAP eligible. For the purpose of this job announcement, Fiduciary Hub bargaining unit employees in the commuting area are considered facility employees. Responsibilities Specific duties include: Provides overall advice and assistance to management and employees in major human resource management functional areas. - Advises managers of regulatory considerations, available alternatives, possible effects of various alternative decisions, and recommends actions/solutions. - Provides technical assessments and advice as requested by managers in exercising their position classification responsibilities. - Analyzes, evaluates, and reviews positions against Office of Personnel Management position classification standards and agency classification guidance. - Ensures that pay entitlements and work schedules are set in accordance with laws and regulations. - Helps SMEs with developing crediting plans. - Interprets and applies regulations pertinent to recruitment and placement. - Makes qualification determinations in accordance with OPM's standards and prepares referral certificates. - Provides information and/or assistance to employees/applicants regarding questions on qualification requirements - Prepares written responses to congressional inquiries for signature by higher authority, as necessary. - Directs a Human Resources Assistant who assists in the accomplishment of work for the assigned Regional Office. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is GS 0201 07, GS 0201 09, GS 0201 11, GS 0201 12. Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday through Friday, between the hours of 7:00 am - 3:30 pm Compressed/Flexible: Available Telework: This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position. Virtual: Current HRC Des Moines staff with an out-based duty location will continue to report to their current approved duty location upon selection. Position Description/PD#: Human Resources Specialist (Recruitment & Placement); PD38753A, PD38469A, PD38467A, and PD36468A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required. Requirements Conditions of Employment As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the Agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the Agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service; Upon completion of your probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows: 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 or 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 I-9 Acceptable Documents. Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:08/03/2026. BASIC REQUIREMENT: To qualify for the HR Specialist position, candidates must meet the following basic requirements as described in one of the following methods: a. Merit-Based Method, b. Education-Based Method, or c. Training-Based Method. Method 1: Merit-Based Method. The Merit-Based Method allows a candidate to meet the basic requirement by possession of the following specialized experience: OR b. Method 2: Education-Based Method. The Education-Based Method allows a candidate to meet the basic requirement by possession of the following: c. Method 3: Training-Based Method. The Training-Based Method allows for a candidate to meet the basic requirement by possession of the following: Six months of general experience, equivalent to at least the GS-4 level of the Federal Government, requiring knowledge of and/or skill in applying laws, regulations, rules, principles, policies, methods, practices, supporting customers, communicating in writing and/or verbally and using various computer systems, and office equipment in administrative, professional, technical or other responsible work positions, plus the possession of one of the four training criteria. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: As a current Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-07 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05 level. For a GS-09 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level. For a GS-11 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09 level. For a GS-12 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11 level. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one year of time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one year of time-in-grade. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-07 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Applicants must have one year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-5 level. Specialized Experience is defined as researching, analyzing, and applying policies, regulations, and standard procedures to provide internal and external customer support. Experience must include use of automated recordkeeping systems to research and resolve issues or provide management support. Education Substitution: To qualify at the GS-07 level based on education, you must have: One (1) full year of graduate-level education. Graduate-level education must demonstrate the competencies necessary to do the work of the position; OR A Bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement (3.0 GPA or higher). Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) is based on 1) class standing, 2) grade point average, or 3) honor society membership. For more information on calculating SAA please visit www.opm.gov. GS-09 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Applicants must have one year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-7 level. Specialized experience is defined as interpreting and applying a variety of routine Federal or state personnel management rules, regulations, and procedures. Experience must include use of automated personnel recordkeeping systems to research and resolve personnel issues or provide management support. Education Substitution: To qualify at the GS-09 level based on education, you must have: Possess a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LLB or J.D, if related; OR possess a combination of Specialized Experience and Education: Only graduate-level education beyond the first year may be used to qualify at the GS-09 level. To compute your combined percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond one year by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100% to qualify for this grade. GS 11 Grade Level: Specialized Experience is defined as applying Title 5 Federal civilian personnel principles, procedures, and regulatory guidance to provide advanced technical guidance on recruitment, staffing, pay setting, and associated personnel actions. Experience includes the use of automated systems for processing of personnel actions, gathering and analyzing data, helping customers regarding human resources issues, and drafting technical responses to inquiries, problems, and complaints. OR Education Substitution: Possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher- level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M., if related. GS-12 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Specialized Experience is defined as providing comprehensive and authoritative guidance on a variety of complex and controversial Title 5 Federal civilian personnel situations and identifying flexible alternatives for problem resolution in a variety of HR areas. Experience must include the application of Title 5 Federal civilian personnel principles, procedures, and regulatory guidance to provide advanced technical guidance on recruitment, staffing, pay setting, and associated personnel actions. Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information. Volunteer Experience: 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; religious; 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume, you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: The work is mainly sedentary, except for walking to local meetings and carrying briefcases and luggage when in travel status. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://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://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications. You may submit unofficial transcripts when applying. However, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to provide an official transcript or a statement from the institution (e.g., from the registrar, dean, or other appropriate official) or equivalent documentation prior to the start date. Additional Information VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced 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 your 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. 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. 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 (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), https://www.va.gov/EMPLOYEE/documents/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review: Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. (https://appsupport-usastaffing.opm.gov/hc/en-us/sections/45063131363475-Reasonable-Accommodation-Information) For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.
