The employment specialist will provide employment assistance to job-ready disabled veterans within the Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) Office within an assigned VA Regional Office (VARO). You will oversee the activities of job readiness, job-seeking services, job development, and job placement that entail consideration of diverse state, regional and local employment laws, and regulations. Furthermore, you will act as a "primary" consultant to VR&E staff and the employing community.

Duties

Your duties include, but are not limited to: Serving as a "triage" team member to help disabled veterans make an "informed choice" regarding the appropriate employment track that best meets their needs with the understanding that veterans can move between tracks. Coordinating and/or performing the evaluation/assessment of rapid access to employment - employment needs. (Pre-employment Job Readiness Evaluation) This will include resume preparation, Interviewing assistance, Career search activities, Discussion of disability and related accommodations, Assistive technology needs, Labor market information, Re-employment information, assistance and/or referral, Self-directed job search via networking and electronic database. Marketing to employers based on vocational goals of the job-ready disabled veterans. This marketing will include identification of key contacts who make hiring decisions, identification of the staffing patterns and job vacancies and Identification of employer hiring pre-requisites Marketing special employer incentives such as on-the-job training, non-paid work experience, special employer incentives, and available tax information. Coordinating employment readiness classes for veterans ready to go to work but lacking important traits in employment readiness. Maintaining and promoting a positive image of the Veterans Readiness &Employment (VR&E) program through active networking and ongoing contacts with employers. Offering direction to employers regarding reasonable accommodation and rehabilitation technology accommodations. Disseminating labor market information to assist counselors and veterans with "informed choice". Providing Employment Services Performance Data for local office. Maintaining and continually updating a database of job-ready disabled veterans. Assisting veterans with job networking, development, and placement. Developing partnerships with employers and other agencies to assist veterans with employment services (e.g. - the Department of Labor, Small Business Administration, local and state agencies, and private sector businesses and employment services). Assisting counselors with employment follow-up according to regulatory requirements. Coordinating efforts to develop job clubs, job labs, or job readiness resource rooms for use by veterans in job readiness preparation and self-directed job search. Maintaining records of employment activities through case notes. Marketing to and becoming the initial "point of contact" for employers who need assistance with return-to-work cases of disabled veterans whose job is affected by disability. 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 full performance level of this position is GS-12. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 7:30am-4:00pm Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: 11623A, 01623A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required.

Requirements

• 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 period
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/14/2023. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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.(multiple SF-50's are allowed) Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience : GS-11 - Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-09) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as experience working with individuals with disabilities and providing individuals with work experiences, internships, or volunteer experiences related to overall employment goal. The experience may have been gained in the federal, military, or private sector. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Employment assistance duties for state or federal vocational rehabilitation offices Account management/liaison for staffing or employment firms in the public or private sector Federal Human Resources experience in staffing, employee relations or reemployment assistance. OR One year of post-master's degree professional vocational rehabilitation experience or successful completion of 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education or have a PH. D or equivalent doctoral degree. OR A combination of specialized experience as described in A, and more than two years but less than three years of education as described in B. (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond two years by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. NON-QUALIFYING EXPERIENCE: Vocational rehabilitation experience obtained prior to completion of the requirements for the master's degree is not qualifying. If one year of work experience is credited for the Basic Requirement, that year cannot also be used for qualifying at the GS-11 level. GS-12 - Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-11) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Direct delivery of vocational rehabilitation services to adults with disabilities in rehabilitation programs, other than those in correctional facilities. Specialized experience is defined as experience involving coordination of federal, private, and public hiring authorities, working with Veterans with disabilities to access Veteran's employment goals and aligning them to the employment track that best meets their needs. The experience may have been gained in the federal, military, or private sector. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Human Resources experience in the Department of Veterans Affairs or related organization that involves staffing and/or employment law, employment specialist duties for private, public or government entities that involve coordinating targeted outreach at various career fairs, jobs clubs, and/or job labs. 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. 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

There is no educational substitution at the GS-12 grade level.

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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Nashville Regional Benefit Office 110 9th Avenue S Nashville, TN 37203 US
• Name: Stanley Graham
• Phone: 601-364-7271
• Email: [email protected]