Skip to main content
U.S. flag
 

Telephone Operator

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Marion VA Medical Center

Summary

This position is organizationally located within the Telephone Operation section of the Health Administration Service at the Marion, IL VA Health Care System. The primary purpose of this position is to provide comprehensive telephone and telecommunication support to the medical facility and all associated sites. The work involves routing the calls to their proper destinations and providing telephone and organizational information to callers.

Overview

Help
Accepting applications
Location
2 vacancies in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
No
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$36,409 - $47,334 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 4
Promotion potential
4
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
Not required
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
Yes
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
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
CBSS-13044149-26-PN
Control number
881648900

Videos

Duties

Help

Duties include, but are not limited to:

Provides a welcoming and positive first impression of MVAHCS by processing incoming, outgoing, networked, and intraoffice calls regarding hospital services, patient information, and providing emergency notification information. Provides telecommunication services as the sole Operator for the medical center and associated sites when a scheduled workday falls on a federal holiday. Receives, interviews, interprets, and directs incoming and outgoing telephone requests to proper locations. Utilizes designated phonebook software and locally developed phonebook applications to retrieve appropriate and correct information and locations when completing call transfers.

Receives routine patient condition inquiries from concerned families and the general public. Maintains Veteran confidentiality under the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 and other applicable laws, federal regulations, and Department of Veterans Affairs statutes and policies.

Assists with the training of newly hired telephone operators, volunteers, and students, etc. in department procedures and telecommunications equipment. Provides technical and administrative assistance to all services of the hospital and health care system including the Administrative Officer of the Day, the Medical Officer of the Day, and the Nursing Supervisor with routing calls to locations, making overhead announcements, and coordinating with emergency services as needed. Processes a variety of calls including difficult calls (threatening, abusive, suicidal, or distraught callers) requiring appropriate action to ensure callers receive the assistance needed. Follows the appropriate protocol for handling callers that may be threatening, abusive, or distraught. Maintains contact with the caller in order to coordinate assistance with local authorities or health system personnel. Maintains courteous and prompt assistance when directing difficult calls and uses personal judgement to complete these calls.


Work Schedule: Monday - Friday Various hours between 7:00am - 4:30pm
Telework: Position may be eligible for ADHOC Telework, at managers discretion.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Telephone Operator/PD10560A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
  • To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
  • All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • Physical Requirements: The work is performed in an office setting that is well-lit, ventilated, and temperature controlled.. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
  • 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 identification 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 period 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 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, 08/28/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: There is no Time-In-Grade requirement at the GS-4 grade level.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

  • General Experience: Applicant must possess at least 52 weeks (1 year) of (General Experience) Progressively responsible clerical, office, or other work that indicates ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position to be filled. Experience must be clearly indicated in your resume. OR,
  • Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed 2 years of education above high school. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. OR,
  • Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of general experience and education beyond 2 years of high school. To calculate, first identify the percentage of required education you have earned. Then identify the percentage of required experience you possess. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify at the GS-04. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. Experience must be clearly indicated in your resume.
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.

Note: 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.

Physical Requirements: The work is performed in an office setting that is well-lit, ventilated, and temperature controlled.


For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

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.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

TheCareer Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

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 qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

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


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. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

Veterans Health Administration

OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans?

The VA's "Fourth Mission" is to improve the Nation's preparedness for response to war, terrorism, national emergencies, and natural disasters by developing plans and taking actions to ensure continued service to Veterans, as well as to support national, state and local emergency management, public health, safety and Homeland Security efforts. To accomplish the fourth mission, all VHA staff may be required to participate in alternative assignments during a national or local disaster.

Agency contact information

Patricia Nwachukwu
Phone
816-896-4934
Email
Patricia.Nwachukwu@va.gov
Address
Marion VA Medical Center
2401 West Main Street
Marion, IL 62959
US

Visit our careers page

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

https://vacareers.va.gov/

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.