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Social Services Assistant

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The Social Work Service of the Phoenix VA Health Care System is recruiting to fill a Social Services Assistant to work within the Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Program within the Community Resource and Referral Center (CRRC) at the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center, Phoenix, Arizona. The incumbent is an active member of the CRRC Program and provides support services to Veterans in the Homeless Program.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
11/25/2022 to 12/19/2022
Salary
$41,870 to - $54,431 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 6
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Phoenix, AZ
1 vacancy
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
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
CBSX-11739403-23-CLC
Control number
691066200

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Duties

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The Community Resource and Referral Center's (CRRC) goal is to move Veterans and their families out of homelessness by providing health care, outreach and case management services designed to improve Veteran's physical and mental health and enhance their ability to remain stable with recovery, and permanently housed and community integrated. The major duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

  • Performing a variety of roles that include welcoming Veterans into the local system, orienting them to the Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Program concepts.
  • Coordinating and connecting Veterans to resources and programs based on preferences.
  • Assisting Veterans in articulating their goals for health and well-being, learning and practicing new self-care skills, helping them monitor their progress, supporting them in advocating for themselves to obtain effective services, and providing tools and resources to assist in navigating the HCHV System.
  • Using their knowledge of internal and external resources to support the Veteran journey through the HCHV system and connecting Veterans to the best options to support their health and well-being and obtaining permanent housing, while establishing an on-going relationship.
  • Coordinating and performing a wide range of tasks to assist Veterans with social services/resources who are struggling with issues of homelessness and striving for independent community living.
  • Supporting the professional staff by serving as the initial contact for veterans and families who are seeking treatment, experiencing problems, and requesting housing assistance information.
  • Providing assistance to staff in all Homeless Programs and supporting them in completing referrals for Veterans to access housing.
  • Administering, managing and tracking of VA Time and Attendance System (VATAS) timekeeping, Automated Data Processing Application Coordinator (ADPAC), Talent Management System (TMS), data tracking for the CRRC, and General Services Administration (GSA) vehicle logs.
  • Assisting Veterans with documentation readiness for housing and application for benefits such as food stamps, Medicaid, and social security.
  • Transporting of Veterans to housing sites and community partner appointments to facilitate transitional housing programs.

Work Schedule: Monday thru Friday, 07:30am to 4:00pm
Compressed/Flexible: Not available.
Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Social Services Assistant/PD20177O
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this 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
  • 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
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
  • Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/19/2022.

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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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 and/or education as described below:

  • Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:
    • Group leader in community or residential recreation or training programs.
    • Counselor in a youth summer camp.
    • Instructor in a training program for the development of job skills.
    • Work that demonstrated the ability to be responsible for and to lead and train members of a job crew.
    • Group activities leader in the Armed Services.
    • Unit leader-monitor-proctor for a dormitory group in a boarding school or other residential facility.
    • Aid or assistant to professional or specialist staff in such fields as personnel (private or government), employment guidance in a vocational or academic institution, social service, or manpower development.
    • Aid or assistant to professional or associate staff engaged in work of a social services nature in private, public welfare, government program, or community organizations, or in voluntary activities.
    • Aid or assistant to professional or specialist staff working with individuals who are addicted to or abuse alcohol and/or drugs.
  • Or Education
    • Graduate education or an internship meets the specialized experience required above GS-5 only in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position. One full year of education meets the requirements for GS-7. Two full years of graduate education or a master's degree meets the requirements for GS-9. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended.
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
  • Customer Service
  • Flexibility
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Technical Competence


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: This is primarily a sedentary position, but the work requires some walking, bending, stooping, standing, stretching, and the carrying of moderately heavy objects. There will b regular, daily driving between the CRRC, VA Medical Center, CBOC's, and community agencies. Concentration and sustained performance under prolonged stress is required because of the time factors involved in completion of work assignments within deadlines. This position also requires frequent use of the hand-held telephone while accessing different computer systems or while writing.

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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or 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. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. 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.

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.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/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/.

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

Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.

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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