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Supervisory General Engineer

Department of Labor
Mine Safety and Health Administration
MSHA, Technical Support, Mine Emergency Operations (MEO) Division

Summary

This position is with Department of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), Technical Support, Mine Emergency Operations (MEO) Division.

MSHA works to prevent death, illness and injury from mining; promote safe and healthful workplaces for U.S. miners. MSHA carries out the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (Mine Act) as amended by the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response (MINER) Act of 2006.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
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.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$152,963 - $197,200 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 15
Promotion potential
15 - Position is at full performance level.
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
Yes
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
Yes
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
MS-26-DAL-MSHA-13022455-WME
Control number
878764200

Duties

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  • Provides engineering expertise and analyzes highly complex technical problems associated with mine emergencies, investigations, and while planning for mine emergency preparedness.
  • Advises the Director of Technical Support and other high-level Agency officials on a wide range of technical issues during a mine emergency and while maintaining mine emergency preparedness.
  • Provides national oversight and conducts internal audits of District preparedness, emergency equipment, training programs and mine emergency response plans.
  • Represents the Agency at national and international conferences and on committees relating to mine emergency regulations, policies, and procedures.
  • Plans, directs, and reviews the work of subordinate staff, comprised of engineers, scientists, and technical specialists.
  • Provides advice, counsel and/or instructions to individual employees on technical and administrative matters.
  • Coordinates MSHA mine emergency activities with State officials, labor representatives, and mine operators, as well as other equipment or service provider that may be on-site.
  • Identifies training needs and ensures that appropriate training is provided.
  • Develops, conducts, and critiques Mine Emergency Response Drills to simulate actual mine emergencies and provides evaluations and recommendations to appropriate Agency personnel and mine operators.
  • Provides advice on all aspects of mine explosion and fire related issues.
  • Disseminates complex technical, regulator and accident-related information to top Agency officials, field entities, mine operators, labor organizations, manufacturers, State Inspection agencies, other Federal Agencies, Congress, and the public.
  • Organizes and conducts open meetings, seminars, and symposiums to share information, improve communications, and develop relationships that will facilitate cooperation during the mine emergencies.
  • Directs the analysis, evaluation and testing of new systems, equipment and response techniques to further enhance emergency preparedness.
  • Periodically evaluates the effectiveness of the Office's efforts and programs, and institutes changes as necessary.
  • Advises high-level Agency officials of findings from the analysis of mine fires, explosions and other mine emergencies and offers suggestions or recommendations for proactive prevention of similar events.
  • Manages MSHA's mine emergency personnel including training and logistical support, and assures mine emergency readiness and preparedness.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be at least 16 years old.
  • Must be a U.S. Citizen.
  • Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.
  • Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
  • Subject to financial disclosure requirements.
  • Requires medical exam and must maintain physical requirements.
  • Requires a supervisory probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
  • Requires a valid driver's license.

Qualifications

In addition to the basic requirements as described in the Education section, your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience and/or additional education requirements defined below. If qualifying based on experience, be sure these types of examples are evident in your resume.

Specialized Experience is the experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities 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 this position, specialized experience is defined as professional engineering work the demonstrates a thorough comprehensive knowledge of concepts, principles, and practices of engineering in the mining industry including knowledge of rock mechanics concepts and methods of experimental stress analysis, underground mining equipment, and a comprehensive knowledge of long-wall mining as practiced in the United States.

Must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, experience and skills to successfully perform the duties of the position.

Specialized experience must include all of the following:

  • Provides engineering expertise and analyzes highly complex technical problems associated with mine emergencies.
  • Manages mine emergency personnel, including training and logical (supplies and equipment) support, and assures mine emergency readiness and preparedness.
  • Experience related to conducting and participating in Mine Emergency Response Drills to simulate actual mine emergencies and provide evaluations and recommendations to appropriate Agency personnel and mine operators.
  • Facilitating a consensus in the face of opposing viewpoints in critical mine safety and health matters.
  • Plans, directs, and reviews the work of subordinate staff, comprised of engineers, scientists and other technical specialists.

Education

You must meet the Basic Requirements to qualify for Supervisor General Engineer, as described below. Transcripts must be submitted to verify education requirements.

Basic Requirement:

A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.
OR
B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:

1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT), or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.

2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.

4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.)

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

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 ACCOMMODATIONS, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

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

You may not be aware, but in the regulations for agency ethics programs, there are requirements for supervisors. Section 2638.103 of Title 5 of the CFR states: Every supervisor in the executive branch has a heightened personal responsibility for advancing government ethics. It is imperative that supervisors serve as models of ethical behavior for subordinates. Supervisors have a responsibility to help ensure that subordinates are aware of their ethical obligations under the Standards of Conduct and that subordinates know how to contact agency ethics officials. Supervisors are also responsible for working with agency ethics officials to help resolve conflicts of interest and enforce government ethics laws and regulations, including those requiring certain employees to file financial disclosure reports. In addition, supervisors are responsible, when requested, for assisting agency ethics officials in evaluating potential conflicts of interest and identifying positions subject to financial disclosure requirements.

This position is subject to the confidential financial disclosure requirements of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-521). Therefore, if selected, you will be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) to determine if a conflict or an appearance of a conflict exists between your financial interest(s) and your prospective position with DOL. This information will be required annually.

MSHA JOBS ONLY (Mandatory by law): All MSHA employees and their spouses, and minor children are prohibited by regulation from having any interest, direct or indirect, in any mine or mining company that may be directly affected by the work of MSHA through its investigations, technical research, or other activities. These interests are prohibited under the Department of Labor's Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct Regulations at 5 CFR 5201.105. Certain MSHA employees are required to file a financial disclosure report. For questions, please contact Wendy Elschide at elschide.wendy.m@dol.gov or 202-693-1000 X19878.

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

The Department of Labor may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government to attract highly qualified candidates. Click here for Additional Information.

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.

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.

You may preview application questions for this vacancy here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13022455

SME Resume Panel Review

Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will review your resume to assess your technical qualifications based on the competencies listed below. Applicants who meet the required qualifications will advance to the next stage of the hiring process.

For each below competency, SME(s) will provide a rating of 0-Not Applicable, 1-Awareness, 2-Basic, 3-Intermediate, 4-Advanced, or 5-Expert based on the content of your resume.

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

  • Leadership
  • Mine Safety and Health
  • Planning and Evaluating
  • Technical Competence


Clickhere for Evaluation details.

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.).

INFORMATION FOR ICTAP/CTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP/CTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. ICTAP/CTAP eligible(s) will be considered well-qualified if they attain at least a rating score of 85 in a numerical rating scheme. Be sure to review the eligibility questions to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.

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.

Mine Safety and Health Administration

Begin a challenging career with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), and you will help shape the workforce of tomorrow. DOL offers rewarding opportunities to contribute to a noble mission; to serve and protect American workers, prepare them for new and better jobs, and to ensure the safety and fairness of American workplaces.

The Department of Labor values its customers. Every DOL employee is responsible for delivering good customer service through accurate, courteous, efficient, and effective transactions.

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.

Applicants with disabilities can contact the vacancy point of contact listed on the job vacancy announcement to request reasonable accommodations needed for the application process.

Agency contact information

Wendy Elschide
Phone
202-693-1000 X19878
Email
elschide.wendy.m@dol.gov
Address
Mine Safety and Health Administration
200 Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20210
US

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