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Telephone Operator

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Iowa City VA Health Care System
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The Telephone Operator works as part of the Benefits and Enrollment Section of the Business Office. The incumbent primarily provides telephone customer service to incoming and in-house calls; operates telephone system, records calls and issues pagers to staff; and makes announcements on an overhead intercom system.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
06/11/2025 to 06/20/2025
Salary
$36,825 to - $46,868 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 4
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Iowa City, IA
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
CBSY-12747970-25-NDM
Control number
838612900

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Duties

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Duties include, but may not be limited to the following:

  • Places and receives local, regular, and special long distance calls using government lines, commercial circuits, or other systems.
  • Provides directory service assistance to callers by retrieving organizational information from computerized directory databases.
  • Maintains records of all calls for computing charges; and provides primary or alternate routing service for high precedence calls.
  • Prepares files for end of month reporting.
  • Monitors vital circuits and emergency type calls such as those to security, the police, the fire department, and other departments; and monitors alarm systems and surrounding buildings and takes appropriate action upon receiving an alarm notification.
  • Operates various paging systems (long range, in-house, overhead call).
  • Makes routine and emergency broadcast announcements during environmental disasters or emergent medical situations.
  • Issues and receives staff pagers in the absence of the assigned supervisor.
  • Retrieves and updates relevant information in computerized databases using instructions and established guidelines pertaining to customer assistance, record keeping and call receiving, placing and monitoring.
  • Performs other related duties as assigned.
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 7:30-am-4:00pm or 8:00am-4:30pm
Telework: This is not a telework position.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Telephone Operator/PD50170A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized.
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized.

The VA Midwest Health Care Network advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • You may be required to serve a probationary period
  • 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 dentification 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)

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/20/2025.

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

  • GENERAL EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one (1) year of general experience that equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to successfully perform the duties of this position. General experience is 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, OR
  • SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE (Transcript Required): Successful completion of two (2) years of education above the high school level in any field. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. One year of full-time undergraduate study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial or technical school, OR
  • COMBINING EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE (Transcript Required): Combination of successfully completed post high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements.
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
  • Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
  • Information Management
  • Technical Competence
  • Telecommunications


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 requires minimal physical effort and is mainly performed in an office setting, there is slight physical effort required such as standing, walking, bending, sitting but efforts primarily consist of talking on the telephone and typing. You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

Work Environment: The work is normally performed in an office setting, The work area typically is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. The telephone operator room is a secured area and only authorized personnel are allowed to be in the work area. The incumbent observes established safety standards and practices as defined in current policy.

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

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

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

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.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

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