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Equal Employment Manager

Department of Commerce
Office of the Secretary
Office of Civil Rights (OCR)

Summary

This vacancy is for an Equal Employment Manager in the Office of the Secretary within the Department of Commerce.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Posted yesterday · Apply by 08/03/26
Due by 11:59 p.m. ET on August 3, 2026
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$121,785 - $158,322 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Promotion potential
14
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
OS-OCR-DE-26-12996715
Control number
877945300

Duties

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As an Equal Employment Manager, you will perform the following duties:

Applies expert knowledge of Federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) laws and regulations, including Title VII, Rehabilitation Act, Age Discrimination in Employment (ADEA), Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (GINA), Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) MD-110, and applicable case precedent to conduct and oversee investigations; analyzes claims and evidence; ensures legally sufficient Reports of Investigation (ROIs); provides authoritative guidance on investigative and procedural matters; resolves complex or novel legal issues; ensures Department-wide compliance with EEO requirements.

Leads, conducts, and oversees moderately complex to highly sensitive investigations involving senior officials, systemic discrimination issues, conflicting testimony, and novel legal questions; conducts interviews, affidavits, interrogatories, depositions, and documentary evidence analysis; evaluates evidence; prepares and reviews legally defensible ROIs; identifies complaint trends and patterns; develops findings and recommendations with organizational impact.

Supports or oversees Department-wide EEO investigative operations across multiple bureaus; provides day-to-day oversight of investigative activities and contractor performance; manages investigative support contracts and Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) responsibilities; develops and refines Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs); maintains complaint tracking and reporting systems; contributes to strategic policy development, operational oversight, acquisition planning, and program improvement initiatives.

Provides technical guidance and consultation to bureau EEO offices, managers, legal counsel, OCR leadership, and external agencies; serves as liaison with EEOC, Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), Human Resources, and Office of General Counsel; develops and delivers training and briefings; coordinates high-priority investigations; facilitates early resolution or settlement efforts; maintains effective working relationships while handling sensitive and confidential matters.

This Job Opportunity Announcement may be used to fill other Equal Employment Manager GS-0260-13, (FPL:14) positions within the Department of Commerce in the same geographical location or local commuting area with the same qualifications and specialized experience.

This position is also advertised under OS-OCR-ST-26-12996717, which is open to Merit Promotion. You must apply to both announcements if you want to be considered for both.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.
  • This position requires a Moderate Risk clearance:
  • You must successfully pass a background investigation. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
  • A probationary period may be required.
  • Selective Service: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see https://www.sss.gov/).
  • If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application.
  • All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
  • Bargaining Unit Position: No
  • Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE form 450): No
  • Permanent Change of Duty Station (PCS) Expense: Will not be paid
  • Drug Testing: No
  • License required: No

Qualifications

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=Occupational-Series

Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience need not have been in the federal government.

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

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 in the Federal service or its non federal equivalency.

Specialized experience is defined as:

Conducting or managing Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) investigations involving allegations of discrimination under Federal civil rights laws and regulations; AND

Applying Federal EEO laws, regulations, EEOC Management Directive 110 (MD-110), investigative procedures, and case precedent to analyze claims and evaluate evidence; AND

Interviewing complainants, management officials, and witnesses, and obtaining sworn testimony and documentary evidence; AND

Preparing, reviewing, or evaluating Reports of Investigation (ROIs) for completeness, accuracy, and legal sufficiency; AND

Providing technical guidance or consultation regarding EEO investigative processes, evidentiary standards, or complaint processing requirements; AND

Coordinating investigative activities with EEO offices, management officials, legal counsel, or external stakeholders.

Education

There is no positive education requirement for this position.

Additional information

The following links provide information on various hiring authorities that do not fall under competitive examining procedures; however, they may enable you to apply through merit assignment procedures, or be eligible for a non-competitive appointment.

  1. Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)
  2. Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP)
  3. Military Spouse Non-Competitive Hiring Authority

ICTAP and CTAP Eligibles: CTAP and ICTAP candidates will be eligible if it is determined that they have exceeded the minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a rating of 85 out of 100. Information about ICTAP eligibility is on the Office of Personnel Management's Career Transition Resources website at: Employee Guide to Career Transition

Military Spouse The spouse of a member of the armed forces seeking eligibility under the non-competitive hiring authority of certain military spouse MUST submit various required documentation by the closing date of the announcement in accordance with one of the three below eligibilities:

  • 1.) Spouse of a member of the armed forces serving on active duty,
  • 2.) Spouse of service member who incurred a 100% disability, or
  • 3.) Un-remarried widow or widower of a service member killed while performing active duty.


Please review the "Required Documents" Section for specific documents pertaining to each of the above eligibilities that MUST be included with your application, if you are applying as a Military Spouse.

Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Reasonable Accommodations (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. 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.

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.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., two-page resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, the result of the USA Hire assessment and Structure Resume Review (SRR) required for this position.

Structured Resume Review: Subject matter experts (SMEs) will review your resume to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. SMEs will review ONLY two (2) pages of your resume. SMEs will not review additional information beyond your resume (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume). Applicants passing the structured resume review will move on to the next phase of the assessment process.

If you meet the minimum qualifications stated in the vacancy announcement, you will be placed in one of the three pre-defined categories. The categories are "gold", "silver" and "bronze". Candidates placed in the "gold" category will be identified for referral to the hiring manager.

How you will be evaluated for preference eligibility: Within each category, those entitled to veterans' preference will be listed at the top of the pre-defined category for which they are placed. Preference eligible with a service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest quality category (gold) depending on the position and grade level of the job. For more information on Category Rating, please go to Category Rating.

For Certain Military Spouses: All applicants who meet the qualification requirements and military spouse noncompetitive eligibility requirements (see "Additional Information" section above") will be forwarded to the Selecting Official for consideration on a separate referral list. While veterans' preference is not a consideration when filling positions under the military spouse non-competitive hiring authority, preference eligibles are encouraged to submit their supporting documentation (DD-214, stating disposition of discharge or character of service, VA letter, SF-15, etc.).

The assessments will evaluate you on the following general/technical competencies required to perform the job; please do not provide a separate written response:

  • Reasoning
  • Decision Making
  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Flexibility
  • Influencing/Negotiating
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork
To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment.

Do NOT include the following types of information in your resume/application. If any are included, you will be deemed INELIGIBLE for consideration.
  • Classified or government sensitive information
  • Social Security Number (SSN)
  • Photos of yourself
  • Personal information, such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc.
We recommend that you preview the online questions for this announcement before you start the application process. To preview the questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12996715

Office of the Secretary

The Department of Commerce, Office of Civil Rights, is seeking a highly skilled Equal Employment Manager (Investigator) to serve as a key contributor and senior advisor within a high-impact Federal EEO investigative program. This position provides the opportunity to lead and support complex, sensitive, and high-visibility EEO investigations that directly support workplace fairness, legal compliance, and organizational integrity across a major Cabinet-level Department.

The ideal candidate is a seasoned investigator with deep expertise in Federal EEO law, strong analytical and legal reasoning skills, and the ability to manage sensitive workplace matters involving senior officials, systemic issues, and high-stakes employment disputes.

This role also provides leadership in investigative oversight, contract management, policy development, and training across multiple bureaus. This is a unique opportunity for an experienced EEO professional to influence investigative quality, strengthen Department-wide compliance efforts, and support a fair and accountable Federal workplace.

Agency contact information

Cathy Mason
Email
cmason@doc.gov
Address
Office of the Secretary
1401 Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20230
US

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Learn more about what it's like to work at Office of the Secretary, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

https://www.commerce.gov/

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