This position is in the Mental Health Service at the Aleda E Lutz VA Medical Center (655), Saginaw, Michigan. The incumbent serves as the Supervisory Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist providing supervisory and program management of the Vocational Rehabilitation Program and vocational rehabilitation services to Veterans.

Duties

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Administrative Supervisory Program Management, 70% Responsible for the administration, supervision, and execution of all components of the Vocational Rehabilitation Program as described below, including staff assigned to the program. Responsible for staff recruitment, hiring actions, human resources actions, and staff performance evaluations. Ensure effective budget planning and adheres to utilization of funds. Continually review expenditures, payrolls, and other disbursements involved in both VA funded and CWT funded patient treatment programs. Must be knowledgeable about the clinical management of Veterans with occupational deficits, utilization of available resources in the creation and sustenance of job opportunities for Veterans, and the processes, methods, techniques, and procedures applied in planning, analyzing, and facilitating new work opportunities and processes for Veterans challenged by chronic unemployment, mental health difficulties, past substance abuse, and extant psychosocial challenges, including homelessness. Responsible for compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act and VA regulations in all work-for-pay programs. This involves, but is not limited to, such functions as time and motion studies, patient and clinic productivity assessments, local prevailing wage surveys, timecard and payroll control and documentation of all of the above, as well as other functions necessary to assure compliance with FLSA and VA regulations. Knowledgeable of and supports the center's EEO/affirmative action programs by executing their assigned duties and responsibilities in a professional manner. Responsible for the knowledge of and adhering to policies and procedures set forth in Memorandum No. 05-14 (i.e., reporting instructions, responsibilities, etc.) and in Article 24 of the VA-AFGE Master Agreement (if appropriate) as they relate to work-related injuries and illnesses. Responsible for reporting any work-related injuries, illnesses, and diseases to your supervisor immediately. Incumbent ensures that working conditions and work practices within the worksite are such that the possibilities of on-the-job injuries are minimized. Vocational Rehabilitation Services, 30% In addition to leadership responsibilities of the CWT/Vocational Rehabilitation Program, the incumbent will, as required due to staffing or workload fluctuations, performs duties and responsibilities as a vocational rehabilitation specialist in the conduct of the CWT-TWE program. Oversee the work of professional staff assigned to execute the CWT-SE program components. Evaluate the appropriateness of Veterans for possible entry into any of the CWT programs and components as described above. Assess the Veteran's functional level, motivation, and work potential by interview. Must have a thorough understanding of the functional aspects of psychiatric and physical disabilities, knowledge of the issues in employment of the handicapped and an understanding of the need for career guidance, training and follow-up. Must possess and demonstrate an understanding of severe medical and psychiatric disorders as well as alcohol and substance abuse is necessary. Knowledge of the employment rights of Veterans with disabilities (whether physical or mental) including job modification, special adaptive equipment (as necessary), affirmative action, and architectural barriers. Must be able to apply significant professional skill, ingenuity, and knowledge to increase self-sufficiency, motivation, proper work habits, adjustment to work conditions, and independent living skills for job retention. Perform vocational assessments of patients through observation, supervision and follow-up in the CWT placements. Engage in evaluation of Veteran status utilizing interviewing skills and interpersonal relationships with the Veteran. Evaluate the significant variables in each case referral. As appropriate and necessary when working with Veterans with significant disabilities/ handicaps, the incumbent must request evaluation of the Veteran by a trained professional utilizing the General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB), if indicated. Engage in vocational counseling of individual patients and/or groups of patients. Incumbent requires a working knowledge of state agencies Work Schedule: Full time, Monday - Friday, 08:00am - 4:30pm Telework: 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. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist/PD925450 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/25/2024. 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-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. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. 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: Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): An IOR is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for entry into this job series, and it is something that can't be waived. To qualify for the GS-1715 Vocational Rehabilitation occupational series, applicants MUST possess the following: Education. Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- vocational rehabilitation, vocational or educational counseling, or other fields related to the position. OR Experience. Specialized Experience (for positions above GS-5): Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: Work that required obtaining and applying occupational information for people with disabilities, knowledge of the interrelationships of the involved professional and specialist services, and skill in employing the methodology and techniques of counseling to motivate and encourage individuals served by the program. Experience that demonstrated knowledge of the vocational rehabilitation problems characteristic of the disabled, including familiarity with available resources and skill in identifying, evaluating, and making effective use of such resources to serve individuals with disabilities; or of the disadvantaged, including knowledge of adjustment problems of the educationally or culturally disadvantaged, familiarity with available adult education and training resources, and ability to recognize problem areas needing special attention. Experience in vocational guidance or teaching in a recognized vocational rehabilitation program or school, developmental or supervisory work in programs of vocational rehabilitation or training programs for the disadvantaged, or personnel or employment placement work that provided extensive knowledge of the training and adjustment requirements necessary to place persons having disabilities or social adjustment problems. English Language Proficiency. No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C. chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English. GS-12 Qualifications Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-11) level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples include: Conducting assessments of Veteran's employability; Planning and developing of appropriate vocational goals and subsequent objectives outlined in rehabilitation plans; budget planning, and utilization of funds experience; Perform vocational assessments of patients through observation, supervision and follow-up in the CWT placements; experience serving in a lead position and/or reviewing work for co-workers or subordinates; expertise to administer and counsel in the areas of counseling, rehabilitation, psychology, career development, and job placement entitlements; Setting and adjusting short-term and long-term priorities for a large service or work group; Independently establishing work plans and methods for self and/or subordinates You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Financial Management Customer Service Managing Human Resources Leadership Planning and Evaluating 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 primarily sedentary, although some physical effort may be required. Walking, climbing stairs and driving a government vehicle will also be regularly required. 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/.

Contacts

• Address Aleda E Lutz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 1500 Weiss Street Saginaw, MI 48602 US
• Name: Miguel Aguilar
• Phone: (559) 225-6100 X6665
• Email: [email protected]