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Recent Graduate - Labor Investigator

Department of Labor
Office of Labor-Management Standards
Los Angeles District Office

Summary

For more information, click Pathways Programs, State Apprenticeship Programs, Other Apprenticeship Programs or Career One Stop.

This is an appointment under the DOL Recent Graduates program. The program duration is one year. Upon successful completion of the program and at the agency's discretion, the appointee may be converted to a term or permanent position in the competitive service.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
03/19/2026 to 03/27/2026
Salary
$58,827 to - $93,549 per year

Salary Range - GS-07: $58,827-$76,476; GS-09: $71,957-$93,549

Pay scale & grade
GS 7 - 9
Location
Los Angeles, CA
3 vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—This is not a remote work position. The selectee will report to an assigned DOL office location on a regular basis and is eligible for participation in telework as determined by management in accordance with DOL policy.
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Recent graduates
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
12 - There is no obligation to provide future promotions if you are selected. Promotions are dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level, meet all the performance requirements, and the supervisor's recommendation to the next grade.
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
Yes
Announcement number
PW-26-DAL-OLMS-12908797-TKS
Control number
861884000

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Applicants who graduated within the past 2 yrs (with an associate, bachelor, master, professional, doctorate, diploma, vocational, technical degree, or certificate, etc.) from a qualifying educational institution or career or technical education program (including registered Apprenticeship Program, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Job Corps, Climate Corps). Veterans unable to apply within 2 yrs of their degree/certificate completion due to military service obligation, see Education section below.

Duties

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This is a career ladder progression position; the incumbent will serve in a developmental capacity, wherein the work is less complex in nature and the supervisor or a senior level employee provides specific instruction and guidance.

For the GS-07 level:

  • Conducts specifically selected, straight-forward civil and criminal investigations, compliance audits, and routine enforcement activities. Serves as team member on complex civil and criminal investigations.
  • Attends and participates in meetings and conferences with union officials and their attorneys and/or accountants and enforcement staff of various state and federal agencies.
  • Conducts extensive searches for information from labor organization financial reports, union constitutions and other documents. Organizes information to assist in preparations for civil and criminal investigations.
  • Drafts portions of investigative reports and audit findings for use in final reports prepared by lead Investigator.

For the GS-09 level:
  • Conducts civil and criminal investigations and compliance audits of union operations or financial practices and performs specific monitoring duties during supervised union elections related to compliance with the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) and related laws.
  • Explains or interprets the provisions, policies and requirements of the pertinent statutory authorities governing the matter under consideration to effect voluntary compliance.
  • Interviews union members regarding allegations of unequal access to union mailing lists for campaign purposes; lack of appropriate safeguards to secret balloting, or ballot fraud.
  • Participates in meetings and conferences with union officials and their attorneys and/or accountants and enforcement staff of various state and federal agencies, including the Regional Solicitor and United States Attorneys on civil and criminal matters.
  • Drafts complete, well-documented reports of investigative findings. Develops appropriate sections of reports of broader or more complex civil or criminal investigations.


As the employee progresses, the assignments will become more difficult and complex with less supervision.

Work Environment: Initial assignments are typically performed in office settings, but usually require extensive additional on-site investigative work. This on-site work may occur during evening or other irregular hours in workplaces of union officials or other persons at work sites that include unsafe and crime ridden urban areas, factories, union office buildings, construction building sites, mine operations, trucking terminals, warehouses, etc. and could expose the Investigator to some personal and environmental risks in order to accomplish required mission.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen.
  • Must be at least 16 years.
  • Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.
  • The GS-07/09 levels require a Non-Sensitive Low Risk (1N) background investigation. For the GS-11/12 levels, incumbent must obtain/maintain a Non-Sensitive Moderate Risk (5N) background investigation.
  • The entire duration of the Recent Graduate Appointment constitutes a trial period. See Trial Period under the Required Documents section for more information.
  • Appointees must sign a DOL Pathways Recent Graduate Program Participant Agreement.
  • Requires a valid driver's license.

Qualifications

Applicants must have graduated, within the past two years, (with an associate, bachelor, master, professional, doctorate, diploma, vocational, technical degree, or certificate, etc.) from a qualifying educational institution or career or technical educational program (including registered Apprenticeship Programs, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Job Corps, Climate Corps). Veterans unable to apply within two years of receiving their degree or certificate due to military service obligation have up to six years after degree or certificate completion.

To qualify for the Recent Graduate - Labor Investigator, you must meet one of the options described by grade level below.

Specialized Experience is the experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform the duties of the position successfully, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

For the GS-07 level:
Specialized Experience: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-05, in the Federal Service.

Qualifying specialized experience for the GS-07 level includes at least three (3) of the following:

  • Providing assistance to higher level staff in researching and applying laws and regulations to identify discrepancies;
  • Performing regulatory compliance work;
  • Assisting in the examination of financial data and records to compile data and draw conclusions;
  • Assisting in conducting fact-finding interviews to gather information;
  • Drafting correspondence for final review and signature; and/or
  • Drafting and/or preparing portions of reports.
OR
Education: Possess one (1) full year of graduate education that provides the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of this position;

OR
Combination of experience and education: Possess a combination of specialized experience as described above AND graduate education as described above, which when combined would equate to at least 100%;

OR
Superior Academic Achievement (S.A.A.): S.A.A. recognizes college or university students who have successfully completed all of the requirements for a bachelor's degree and achieved superior academic standing as evidenced by one of the three methods described below.

S.A.A. is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership.

1. Class standing -- Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses.

2. Grade-point average (G.P.A.) -- Applicants must have a grade-point average of a. 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or b. 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.

3. Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society -- Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies listed below:

Alpha Beta Gamma, Alpha Chi, Alpha Epsilon, Alpha Epsilon Delta, Alpha Epsilon Rho, Alpha Eta Mu Beta, Alpha Iota Delta, Alpha Kappa Delta, Alpha Kappa Mu, Alpha Lambda Delta, Alpha Phi Sigma, Alpha Pi Mu, Alpha Sigma Lambda, Alpha Sigma Mu, Alpha Sigma Nu, Beta Gamma Sigma, Beta Kappa Chi, Beta Phi Mu, Chi Epsilon, Chi Sigma Iota, Delta Epsilon Sigma, Delta Mu Delta, Delta Tau Alpha, Epsilon Pi Tau, Gamma Theta Upsilon, Kappa Mu Epsilon, Kappa Omicron Nu, Kappa Tau Alpha, Lambda Iota Tau, Lambda Pi Eta, Lambda Sigma, Mortar Board, Mu Kappa Tau, National Society of Scabbard and Blade, NSCS (The National Society of Collegiate Scholars), Omega Chi Epsilon, Omega Rho, Omicron Delta Epsilon, Phi Beta Delta, Phi Sigma, Phi Sigma Iota, Phi Sigma Tau, Phi Upsilon Omicron, Pi Alpha Alpha, Pi, Delta Phi, Pi Gamma Mu, Pi Kappa Lambda, Pi Omega Pi, Pi Sigma Alpha, Pi Tau Sigma, Pi Theta Epsilon, Psi Beta, Psi Chi, Rho Chi, Sigma Beta Delta, Sigma Delta Pi, Sigma Lambda Alpha, Sigma Lambda Chi, Sigma Pi Sigma, Sigma Tau Delta, Sigma Theta Tau, Tau Alpha Pi, Tau Beta Pi, Tau Sigma Delta, Theta Alpha Kappa, Upsilon Pi Epsilon.


For the GS-09 level: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-07, in the Federal Service.

Qualifying specialized experience for the GS-09 level includes at least four (4) of the following:

  • Reviewing, analyzing and interpreting laws to assure compliance with regulations;
  • Conducting simple investigations of the violation of laws;
  • Conducting audits/reviews of financial records to identify discrepancies (e.g., labor union, banking records);
  • Examining, researching and gathering information for preparation of portions of investigative reports;
  • Providing advice and guidance to the public on regulatory requirements; and/or
  • Drafting and/or preparing reports.

OR
Education: Possess a Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or two (2) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B or J.D, if related, that provides the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of this position;

OR
Combination of experience and education: Possess a combination of specialized experience as described above AND graduate education as described above, which when combined would equate to at least 100%.

Education

To be eligible for an appointment, you must meet requirement A or B.

A. Completed all requirements for a diploma, associate, bachelor, master, professional, doctorate, vocational, or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution or career or technical education program (including registered Apprenticeship Programs, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Job Corps, Climate Corps) within the previous two years; OR

B. Was released or discharged from active duty within the previous two years, where the applicant is a veteran who, due to a military service obligation, was precluded from applying for a recent graduate position during any portion of the two-year eligibility period following completion of his/her degree or certificate requirements, provided that not more than six years have transpired since the applicant completed the requirements for a degree or certification. You must submit an academic transcript from your academic institution showing the date that you most recently completed the academic requirements described above.

*For Accredited Post-Secondary Institutions, click Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs
*For Registered State Apprenticeship Programs Information, click State Apprenticeship Programs
*For Other Apprenticeship Programs, click Apprenticeship Programs
*For Industry-Endorsed Certificate Programs, click Career One Stop Certificate Finder

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 coursework requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

Additional information

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

Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. (https://appsupport-usastaffing.opm.gov/hc/en-us/sections/45063131363475-Reasonable-Accommodation-In%E2%80%A6).

The mission of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to protect the welfare of workers and job seekers, improve working conditions, expand high-quality employment opportunities, and assure work-related benefits and rights for all workers.

Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION, REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

This appointment is under the DOL Recent Graduates program. The program duration is one year. The appointee must be a U.S. citizen to be eligible for conversion to a permanent position in the competitive service upon completion of the program.

This position is inside the bargaining unit. This position is an investigator position, it falls under the National Union of Labor Investigators (NULI).

As a condition of employment, all personnel must undergo a background investigation for access to DOL facilities, systems, information and/or classified materials before they can enter on duty: BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION

The Fair Chance Act (FCA) prohibits Federal agencies from requesting an applicant's criminal history information before the agency makes a conditional offer of employment. If you believe a DOL employee has violated your rights under the FCA, you may file a complaint of the alleged violation following our agency's complaint process Guidelines for Reporting Violations of the Fair Chance Act.
Note: The FCA does not apply to some positions specified under the Act, such as law enforcement or national security positions.

All Department of Labor employees are subject to the provisions of the Drug-Free Workplace Program under Executive Order 12564 and Public Law 100-71.

Based on agency needs, additional positions may be filled using this vacancy.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your evaluation will be based on how well you meet the qualifications outlined in this vacancy announcement, as demonstrated through your resume and supporting documentation.

Click Application of Veterans Preference for more information.

You may preview application questions for this vacancy here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12908797

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.

Category A - 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 - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the critical competencies required by this position.

Category C - Meets the specialized experience described in the minimum qualification requirements section of this announcement and demonstrates proficiency in the basic competencies.

Click here for Evaluation details.

USA Hire

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork

The information you provide may be verified by a review of your paid, unpaid, and volunteer, as it demonstrates the competencies or skills required for the position to be filled. Your evaluation may include an interview, reference checks, or other assessment conducted by HR specialists, subject matter experts, or panel members and may include other assessment tools (ex. interview, structured interview, written test, work sample, etc.).

WRITING SAMPLE: Applicants may be required to complete a writing sample during the interview process.

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