Clarification from the agency

This position is announced under FEMA's Excepted Service, Stafford Act Hiring Authority for a full-time Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee (CORE) appointment. After three years of continuous service, CORE employees earn competitive eligibility to apply for permanent full-time positions at FEMA. Veterans Preference does not apply to the CORE selection process.

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What will I do in this position if hired? 

In this position, you will have experience performing tasks related to receiving, storing, and inventorying equipment and supplies. A CDL Class A license is required. Typical assignments include:

• Manages assigned staff and performs task related to receiving, unloading, storing, and inventorying equipment and supplies.
• Operating vehicles with a GVWR of more than 32,000 pounds.
• Operating forklift and trucks to move material and equipment.
• Verifying the quantity and quality of items received and forwarding receipt documentation.
• Updating storage records, maintaining and upkeeping the storage area, and operating a computer terminal to record inventory data.

What else do I need to know? 

At FEMA, our mission is to help people before, during and after disasters, and every employee at FEMA has a role in emergency management.  Every FEMA employee has regular and recurring emergency management responsibilities, though not every position requires routine deployment to disaster sites. All positions are subject to recall around the clock for emergency management operations, which may require irregular work hours, work at locations other than the official duty station, and may include duties other than those specified in the employee's official position description. Travel requirements in support of emergency operations may be extensive in nature (weeks to months), with little advance notice, and may require employees to relocate to emergency sites with physically austere and operationally challenging conditions.

This announcement is for a position as a CORE (Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee).  CORE employees are full-time employees hired to directly support the response and recovery efforts related to disasters. Appointments to CORE positions are typically between two years and four years in duration and may be renewed based upon workload needs and funding availability.  Employees are hired under the Robert T. Stafford Act and are excluded from the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing jobs in the competitive service. They can be hired under a streamlined process instead of a competitive process. After three years of continuous service, Stafford Act employees may be granted competitive eligibility to apply for permanent full-time positions at FEMA.

FEMA is committed to ensuring that its workforce reflects the diversity of the nation.  At FEMA, our workforce includes the many identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, ages, cultures, and beliefs of the people we serve. To learn about FEMA’s ongoing diversity and inclusion efforts, reasonable accommodation process, and the FEMA Core Values, please visit www.fema.gov.    

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.
• You must successfully pass a background investigation.
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after 12/31/59.
• You must be able to obtain and maintain a Government credit card.
• Travel will be required.
• Please review "Other Information" section for additional key requirements.

To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo, successfully pass, and maintain a background investigation for [Public Trust /Moderate Level as a condition of placement into this position. This may include a credit check after initial job qualifications are determined, a review of financial issues, such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs (please visit: Mythbuster on Federal Hiring Policies for additional information). For more information on background investigations for Federal jobs please visit OPM Investigations.

Please ensure you meet the qualification requirements described below.

 

Qualifications

All qualifications and eligibility requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

Applicants will be rated in accordance with the OPM Federal Wage System Qualification Standard. Although a specific length of time and experience is not required for most trade and labor occupations, you must meet any screen-out element listed, and show through experience and training that you possess the quality level of knowledge and skill necessary to perform the duties of the position at the level for which you are applying. Qualification requirements emphasis is on the quality of experience, not necessarily the length of time.

Working Conditions: 

Performs assignments indoors in both comfortable and uncomfortable areas, and outdoors in all but most extreme inclement weather. Work areas may be hot, dusty, drafty, inadequately lighted and ventilated, etc. Is subject to cuts, abrasions, injuries from equipment, or the possibility of serious injury resulting from accidents while driving and/or loading and unloading materials. Drives in all types of traffic and weather on public roads, and is exposed to the danger of serious accidents. Drives in heavy traffic and at highway speeds. Commercial Drivers’ License (CDL) required. TDP – This position has been identified as a Testing Designated Position (TDP) because of its security, public-health, and/or public safety sensitivity, therefore you are subject to random drug testing under FEMA’s Drug-Free Workplace Plan (DWP). Refusal to be tested will result in disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. The fork lift operator works inside areas that are sometimes damp and drafty. Occasionally works outside in all kinds of weather.

Physical Effort:

Work requires standing on hard surfaces for extended periods of time; bending, stooping, and working in tiring and uncomfortable positions. May lift and carry items that weigh up to 100 pounds. Heavier items are moved with weight handling equipment or with assistance from others. Light physical effort is required in reaching, bending, turning, or moving hands, feet, and legs to operate hand and foot controls to motor vehicles. Moderate physical effort is exerted in operating, turning, backing and controlling heavier vehicles. Fork lift operating requires moderate physical effort in operating hand and foot controls while driving, turning, starting, and stopping the fork lift and raising, lowering, and tilting the loads being moved. Strain is caused by the vibration of the fork lift truck. Must meet the physical requirements to obtain and maintain a Commercial Driver’s Licens

Please read the following important information to ensure we have everything we need to consider your application:

• Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.

• Please limit your resume to five pages.  If more than five pages are submitted, only the first five pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility and qualifications. 

• Your resume serves as the basis for experience related qualification determinations, and you must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience and education (if applicable), as it relates to this job opportunity. Please use your own words, be clear, and specific when describing your work history. We cannot make assumptions regarding your experience.

Are you qualifying based on your work experience? 

• Qualifications are based on your ability to demonstrate in your resume that you possess one year of the specialized experience for this announcement at a comparable scope and responsibility.  To ensure all of the essential information is in your resume, we encourage you to use the USAJOBS online Resume Builder. If you choose to use your own resume, it must contain the following information organized by experience/position: (1) job title, (2) name of employer, (3) start and end dates of each period of employment (from MM/DD/YY to MM/DD/YY), (4) detailed description of duties performed, accomplishments, and related skills, and (5) hours worked per week (part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience). Federal experience/positions must also include the occupational series, grade level, and dates in which you held each grade level.  

• Are you a current or former FEMA Reservist/DAE employee?  To accurately credit your experience from intermittent positions and Reservist Deployments, you must list the dates (from MM/DD/YY to MM/DD/YY) of deployments that are relevant to your qualifying experience, along with the job title and specific duties you were responsible for during each deployment.

• Determining length of General or Specialized Experience is dependent on the above information.  Failure to provide the above information in your resume may result in your application being found “not qualified.” 

• 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 provides valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

• For additional information on crediting experience and/or education, please reference the OPM General Schedule Qualification Standards

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your resume, supporting documentation, and your responses to the occupational questionnaire to ensure you meet the minimum qualification requirements.  If you meet minimum qualifications, your experience, education, and training will be rated using a job questionnaire that is based on the following competencies or knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform this job:

SCREEN OUT FACTOR: 

1. SCREEN OUT FACTOR:
   1. Ability to do the work of the position without more than normal supervision

2. JOB ELEMENTS:
   1. Work Practices
   2. Technical Practices
   3. Ability to Interpret Instructions
   4. Knowledge of Materials
   5. Dexterity and Safety 

If you are qualified, you may be referred to a selection panel for consideration.

We recommend that you preview the online questions for this announcement before you start the application process.