Clarification from the agency

Open to Current, Permanent, VISN 22 HRMS Employees Only.

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The salary range listed on this announcement only reflects the General Schedule incorporating Rest of U.S. basic pay. Upon selection, the salary will be adjusted to include the locality adjustment for the specific location.

The Employee and Labor Relations Service is part of VISN 22 and this Supervisor will report to the VISN 22 Desert Pacific Healthcare Network Employee Labor Relations Chief. The selectee will perform the full range of program administration, research, and case management in employee relations related to policy, conduct, performance, discipline, attendance, and dispute resolution; Perform the full range of Labor Relations (LR) duties. Establish and maintain effective relationships with labor organizations that represent Federal employees, negotiate and administer labor agreements, and provide guidance and consultation to management on a variety of labor relations matters. Perform complex assignments and is considered the expert in ER/LR programs and is consistently relied upon by senior management to provide skilled, technical and definitive advisory services in these critical ER/LR program areas.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 08:00 am - 04:30 pm (negotiable upon selection), must be able to accommodate customers in the Pacific Standard Time zone.
Telework: 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 Human Resources Specialist (ER/LR)/PD99980S
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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 (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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 or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/19/2026.

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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. 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.

The BASIC REQUIREMENT for the HR Specialist GS-0201 series is presumed met if found qualified at the GS-0201-7 level and above.

To qualify for this position at the GS-13 level, you must meet one of the following listed Criteria:

Criteria 1- Graduate Degree and Specialized Experience: Successful completion of a graduate level degree or higher and three years of progressive specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level. Such experience may be gained in administrative, professional, technical or other responsible work positions in the public (i.e., Government or military) or private sector. Qualifying specialized experience includes: I 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 includes: skill in applying, laws, Executive orders, regulations, policies, collective bargaining agreements, concepts, and various HR policies, practices, procedures, and management controls of the labor and employee relations functions in a regionalized operation sufficient to: provide comprehensive employee and labor relations services onsite; coordinate with and advise supervisors and managers on technical issues involving disciplinary, adverse and all other relevant corrective actions. In addition, the incumbent must possess a knowledge of, and skill in applying, collective bargaining agreements and related principles, concepts, laws, regulations, techniques, and guidelines sufficient to support an organization's employee and labor relations program, including negotiation with labor representatives; deploying research and analytical techniques to gather, document, and analyze information to develop strategies and action plans.

~OR~

Criteria 2- Specialized Experience: You must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in federal service that demonstrates HR management knowledge, concepts and principles and the performance of work in one or more of the HR specialty areas. Such experience may be gained in administrative, professional, technical or other responsible work positions in the public (i.e., Government or military) or private sector. Qualifying specialized experience includes: expert-level knowledge, skill in applying and analytical skill to advise management and employees on employee relations concepts, principles, practices, and case law (e.g., related to reasonable accommodation, prohibited HR practices, and third-party powers and procedures); skill in researching case law, research facts in order to create solutions to problems; skill in applying, the full range of labor relations theories, principles, methods and techniques to conduct studies for management and respond to union interests at the bargaining table; provide training and communication to management on agency-wide labor relations and employee relations policies and procedures; independently represent management in third-party proceedings; knowledge of how other government agencies' rules and regulations impact the Department of Veterans Affairs; skilled in fact-finding, interviewing, and case management techniques to advise on and/or conduct investigations; advise and provide technically accurate interpretations of local negotiated agreements and provisions to reconcile conflicting technical viewpoints; serves as principal point of contact on labor management matters of overall concern to established bargaining units at the local level.

How you will be evaluated

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

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Employee Relations
• Labor Relations
• Problem Solving

Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR 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; 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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.