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Economist

Department of Labor
Employment and Training Administration
This job announcement has closed

Summary

DOL seeks to attract and retain a high performing and diverse workforce in which employees’ differences are respected and valued to better meet the varying needs of the diverse customers we serve. DOL fosters a diverse and inclusive work environment that promotes collaboration, flexibility and fairness so that all individuals are able to participate and contribute to their full potential.

This position is located in the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Office of Policy Development and Research (OPDR) in Washington, D.C.

OPDR supports ETA polices and investments to improve the public workforce system by analyzing, formulating, and recommending legislative changes and options for policy initiatives, including budget justifications. OPDR provides ETA with strategic approaches to improve performance and outcomes through research, demonstrations and the evaluation of major ETA programs.

This position has promotion potential to GS-14. Promotion Potential: There is no obligation to provide future promotions to you if you are selected. Future promotions are dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level, the continuing need for an employee assigned to the higher level, and supervisory approval.

This position is outside the bargaining unit.

Special Employment Consideration: DOL 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.

Overview

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Job canceled
Open & closing dates
01/13/2017 to 05/22/2018
Salary
$94,796 to - $145,629 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13 - 14
Location
District of Columbia, DC
FEW vacancies
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time - Full Time
Service
Promotion potential
14
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Announcement number
DE-17-ETA-OPDR-020
Control number
462453800

This job is open to

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Duties

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As an Economist, at the full performance level (GS-14), you will:

  • Serve as a key economic expert on the application of appropriate statistical and econometric methods for program and policy analysis, data collection and validation, and technical computation with respect to very large public workforce system datasets.
  • Lead the development of and/or carry out analyses of policy and program activities including the design of program data collection systems, assembly of program datasets, and design and execution of data validation methodologies.
  • Develop econometric and statistical models used for efficient and effective program management, the production of publishable quality reports on economic and labor market trends, the development or refinement of legislative proposals, policy materials such as analytical papers, and/or programmatic materials describing initiatives.
  • Participate in planning research, demonstration and/or evaluation agendas or projects relating to econometric and statistical analysis of labor market data.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Appointment to this position may require a background investigation.
  • Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
  • U.S. Citizenship.

Applicants must meet all legal and regulatory requirements. Reference the "Required Documents" section for additional requirements.

Qualifications

This position has an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR), as described below:

A. Degree: economics, that included at least 21 semester hours in economics and 3 semester hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in economics, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Evaluation of Experience

Examples of qualifying experience include:

  1. individual economic research assignments requiring planning, information assembly, analysis and evaluation, conclusions and report preparation;
  2. supervisory or project coordination assignments involving a staff of professional economists, and requiring the evaluation and interpretation of economic information; or
  3. teaching assignments in a college or university that included both class instruction in economics subjects and one of the following (1) personal research that produced evidence of results, (2) direction of graduate theses in economics, or (3) service as a consultant or advisor on technical economics problems.
Experience in related fields that did not involve the use and understanding of economic principles and theories may not be used as qualifying experience for these positions. Special attention on this point should be given to certain types of work that may or may not have provided professional economic experience. The following examples of work require special care in such determinations:
  1. economic statistics;
  2. industrial surveys;
  3. management of individual business enterprises, including farms;
  4. industrial planning;
  5. writing or editorial work in economic subjects; and
  6. financial market analysis.
Miniumum Qualification Requirements

GS-13: In addition to the IOR, applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-12, in the Federal Service. Specialized experience, for this position, includes:
  • Analyzing program data, evaluation or statistical reports of programs authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) (or its predecessor Workforce Investment Act (WIA)) and partner programs such as Trade Adjustment Assistance, Unemployment Insurance, and the Senior Community Service Employment Program, among others; and
  • Compiling and analyzing WIOA or WIA program data from a variety of sources (e.g. states, grantees, etc.), validating data, and reporting results/outcomes as well as preparing reports reflecting economic patterns and labor market trends.
GS-14: In addition to the IOR, applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-13, in the Federal Service. Specialized experience, for this position, includes:
  • Demonstrated experience in applying statistical and econometric methods for programs authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) (or its predecessor Workforce Investment Act (WIA)) and partner programs such as Trade Adjustment Assistance, Unemployment Insurance, and the Senior Community Service Employment Program, among others, including analyzing and performing technical computations of very large public workforce system datasets; and

  • Demonstrated experience analyzing WIOA or WIA program data from a variety of sources (e.g. states, grantees, etc.), validating data, and reporting results/outcomes as well as preparing and presenting technical material and complex issues related to the performance accountability system.

Education

This position has a minimum education requirement. You MUST submit academic transcripts demonstrating that you meet the qualifying educational requirements. If specific course work is required to fulfill the eligibility and/or minimum qualification requirements, you must supply transcripts from each academic institution in which the required courses were taken in order to receive credit for that course work. See the 'Qualifications and Evaluations' section of this announcement for more details.

If you do not submit sufficient academic documentation necessary to demonstrate that you meet the eligibility and minimum qualification requirements described in this announcement, your application will be deemed incomplete and you will be ineligible for further consideration for this vacancy.

College Transcript and Evaluation of Foreign Education - The Department of Labor does not recognize academic degrees from unauthorized secondary schools or post-secondary institutions that are not accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the Department of Education. Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service. If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum course work requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

Additional information

The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.

The Department of Labor does not make unfavorable hiring decisions on the basis of an applicant's previous or current unemployment, or the fact that an applicant has experienced financial difficulty through no fault of his/her own and has undertaken good faith efforts to meet his/her financial obligations. Consideration is given to financial status in relation to appointments only where required by law, regulation, or Executive Order.

Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION, REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, SELECTIVE SERVICE REGISTRATION, PROBATIONARY PERIOD, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be evaluated against the evaluation factors below and will be placed into a category based on your vacancy question responses.

Categories
Category A (Best Qualified) - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and has successful experience in the same or similar job that has demonstrated superior proficiency in applying critical competencies required by this position to work of increased levels of difficulty and complexity.

Category B (Well Qualified) - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the critical competencies required by this position.

Category C (Minimally Qualified)- Meets the specialized experience described in the minimum qualifications requirements section of this announcement and demonstrates proficiency in the basic competencies.

Evaluation Factors (Competencies) - All qualified applicants will be evaluated on the following key competencies:

  1. Program Knowledge – Knowledge of public workforce system performance accountability cycle.
  2. Technical Competence – Ability to research, analyze and evaluate large data sets of workforce development programs. Ability to use statistical software for analyzing and synthesizing data sets.
  3. Communication – Ability to communicate technical and complex statistical and econometric methods in a clear, concise, organized and convincing manner; and work with individuals at different levels of an organization with varied backgrounds and perspectives.

The information you provide may be verified by a review of your work experience and/or education, by checking references and through other means (ex. interview). The examining Human Resources Office (HRO) makes the final determination concerning applicant ratings. Your resume MUST provide sufficient information to substantiate your responses to the vacancy questions. If not, the HRO may amend your responses to more accurately reflect the level of competency indicated by the content of your resume. Your evaluation may also include a review by a Human Resources Specialist or panel and may include other assessments (ex. interview, panel review, written test, writing sample, etc.)

INFORMATION FOR ICTAP ELIGIBLES ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. ICTAP eligibles who are placed into Category B or higher will be considered "well-qualified".

Click Application of Veterans Preference for Category Rating Jobs for more information.

To preview questions please click here.

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