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Secretary (OA)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration

Summary

The position is located in the Veterans Administration (VA), Veterans health Administration (VHA), Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center (VAMC). The incumbent gives clerical support to the Associate Medical Center Director, fiscal, logistics, human resources and voluntary services, as well as to the other direct reports to the Office of the Associate Director as needed.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
No
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$45,645 - $73,022 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 6 - 8
Promotion potential
8
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
No
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
CBSV-13100998-27-JI
Control number
890353000

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Duties

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Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Duties include but are not limited to the following:

  • Exercises exclusive control over the Associate Medical Center Director's appointments with complete authority or commitments of time.
  • Arranges meetings for the Associate Director and keeps the calendar current.
  • Establishes priorities, sets up, reschedules, or refuses appointments, accepts or declines invitations to meetings, and arranges for representation by a subordinate official when that is desirable.
  • Prepares agendas and types minutes of various committee meetings for which the Associate Medical Center Director
    is responsible.
  • Maintains current files of all committees the Associate Medical Center Director participates in.
  • For committee meetings which the Associate Medical Center Director is responsible for, ensures the committee structure is being adhered to.
  • Aids and trains committee chairs as needed in compiling and updating charters, committee policies, reporting templates and other committee-specific routine documents as needed.
  • Updates committee action items, tracking them to completion within each committee as needed.
  • Follows up on projects resulting from conferences to ensure that schedules are met and reports progress to managers.
  • Composes correspondence on own initiative, based on a knowledge of superior's views and desires.
  • Assembles correspondence including: memoranda, letters, and other data or correspondence.
  • Composes routine correspondence for signature of the Associate Medical Center Director.
  • Reads and screens all correspondence for the Associate Medical Center Director.
  • Reviews correspondence and documents prepared for signature of or requiring coordination by managers for conformance with regulations, grammar, format, and special policies of the medical center.
  • Receives and carefully scrutinizes incoming and outgoing correspondence.
  • Returns such communications to the originator for correction when not in conformance with known policies or correspondence regulations.
  • Gives advice and instructions to subordinate offices through discussions with author or staff to obtain higher degree of compliance with general medical center policies and correspondence regulations.
  • Maintains suspense on replies/reports to ensure that actions are completed when required.
  • Obtains information required by management from various sources within the VA, requiring a comprehensive knowledge of the VA's complex organizational structure.
  • Collects such information, presenting in its original form or editing and revising as necessary.
  • Sends out union 10-day review, and prepares for tetrad review and signature.
Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 07:30 am to 4:00 pm
Compressed/Flexible: Not available
Telework: Not available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD703240, PD703250, and PD703260
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not authorized

Requirements

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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.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, with intermittent walking, bending, lifting, and carrying supplies which weigh less than 15 pounds. Work requires the use of a keyboard, computer and video display for up to six hours intermittent per day.
  • 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, 11/04/2026.

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-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. For a GS-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-6. For a GS-8 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. 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.You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

  • GS-6 Specialized experience: equivalent to at least the GS-5 level, that demonstrates the following: Experience performing clerical, secretarial or administrative functions in a medical environment; reviewing correspondence for procedural, grammatical and/or typographical accuracy; performing administrative support work such as program or office planning; triaging incoming calls, and maintaining filing systems; and organizing, scheduling and handling logistics for conferences, meetings, interviews.
  • GS-7 Specialized experience: equivalent to at least the GS-6 grade level that demonstrates: Experience with a range of common clerical practices and procedures sufficient to file materials and obtain requested information. Experience with the organization and functions of the office in order to perform all of the procedural work; experience with the duties of the staff sufficient to perform non-routine clerical tasks; experience coordinating the work of the office with work of other offices. Knowledge of grammar, spelling, punctuation and required formats sufficient to recognize and correct errors in correspondence and reports.
  • GS-8 Specialized Experience: equivalent to at least the GS-7 grade level that demonstrates: Experience with the administrative concepts, principles and practices sufficient to independently eliminate conflict and duplication in extensive office procedures. Experience with the office's routines and procedures sufficient to receive and refer phone calls and visitors to staff members. Experience with a range of common clerical practices and procedures sufficient to file materials and obtain requested information; the organization and functions of the office in order to perform all of the procedural work; the duties, priorities, commitments, polices and program goals of the staff sufficient to perform non-routine tasks such as locating and summarizing information from files and documents that are relevant to the problems at hand. experience coordinating the work of the office with work of other offices. Knowledge of grammar, spelling, punctuation and required formats sufficient to recognize and correct errors in correspondence and reports.
Please note: In addition to meeting experience requirements, applicants for this position must show possession of the following proficiency: Ability to type 40 words per minute. Applicants may meet this requirement by passing the appropriate performance test, presenting a certificate of proficiency from a school or other organization authorized to issue such certificates by the Office of Personnel Management local office, or by self-certifying their proficiency. Performance test results and certificates of proficiency are acceptable for 3 years.

Preferred Experience:
  • Experience working as an office manager coordinating high-stakes meetings and agendas, managing confidential information and compliance, managing calendars and travel.
  • Experience in interdepartmental communication and workflow optimization.
  • Experience utilizing Microsoft Office Suite, office automation, and data management.
  • Experience handling sensitive information, risk mitigation, and ensuring compliance with legal and ethical standards.
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

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

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.

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

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career 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 ICTAP and 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/.

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.

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:

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


The assessment includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.

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.

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?

Spokane is a family-oriented city located in beautiful eastern Washington with a regional population of 470,000. Our four season climate and pristine surroundings offer an abundance of exceptional recreation opportunities. Spokane is known for its affordable housing and excellent schools and universities, as well as being the regional arts and cultural center. Set an early tee time at any of the scenic and well-designed golf courses in the area, then walk, bike or canoe along the Centennial Trail. Cool off in one of 76 regional lakes, camp in gorgeous state parks, wrestle with whitewater rapids and ski through fresh powder. Enjoy the vibrant arts and entertainment scene. Take a walk around Riverfront Park and then catch a performance of the Spokane Symphony, see a show at the Opera House or take in a play at the Civic Theater. The indoor and outdoor possibilities are limitless!

Agency contact information

Julie Isaza
Phone
801-582-1565
Email
Julie.Isaza@va.gov
Address
Mann-Grandstaff Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center
4815 North Assembly Street
Spokane, WA 99205
US

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https://vacareers.va.gov/

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