Clarification from the agency

ALL US CITIZENS DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR 337.201) for this occupation.

This Food Service Worker position is located within the Nutrition and Food Services at the Bruce W Carter Department of VA Medical Hospital.

Major duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Assists in the preparation of simple food items such as sandwiches, salads, beverages, and desserts.
• Portions food into serving containers using established serving sizes to ensure dietary accuracy.
• Sets up serving and tray assembly lines with appropriate food, condiments, utensils, and supplies.
• Loads, arranges, and delivers patient meal trays to designated areas following scheduled delivery times.
• Collects soiled trays and dishes from patient units and returns them to the dish room for cleaning.
• Operates commercial dishwashing equipment, ensuring dishes, utensils, and cookware meet sanitation standards.
• Cleans and sanitizes food service equipment, workstations, and dining areas according to HACCP and VA sanitation policies.
• Restocks food and non-food items in refrigerators, freezers, dry storage, and serving areas.
• Follows safe food handling procedures to prevent contamination and ensure compliance with infection control requirements.
• Receives and stores deliveries; rotates stock using First-In-First-Out (FIFO) methods.
• Assists cooks and higher-graded food service staff with basic food preparation tasks as needed.
• Operates various kitchen equipment such as blenders, toasters, warmers, and carts safely and correctly.
• Communicates with nursing and dietetic staff regarding tray issues, missing items, or diet changes.
• Performs other related duties to support meal service and ensure efficient kitchen operations.

Preferred Experience:

• Prior food service experience in a healthcare environment, including work on tray-line assembly. Familiarity with sanitation standards, safe food-handling practices, and dishwashing procedures is also preferred.

Work Schedule: Part Time (20 hours), 4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. variable work schedule with rotating weekends and holidays.
Position Description Title/PD#: Food Service Worker/PD99921A
Physical Requirements: The work requires continuous standing and walking, along with frequent bending, stooping, reaching, and stretching to complete food service tasks. The incumbent must be able to lift and carry lightweight items (such as trays, food items, and service equipment) and occasionally handle heavier objects up to 40 pounds. Duties involve pushing food carts over various surfaces and maneuvering them through congested areas. The position requires tolerance for working in both hot and cold environments, including time spent in refrigerated spaces and production areas where temperatures may be above or below normal kitchen conditions.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
• 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 Services Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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.
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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.

EXPERIENCE: A specific length of training and experience is not required, but you must show evidence of training or experience of sufficient scope and quality of your ability to do the work of this position. Evidence which demonstrates you possess the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the duties of this position must be supported by detailed descriptions of such on your resume. Applicants will be rated in accordance with the OPM Federal Wage System Qualification Standards.

SCREEN-OUT ELEMENT: Your qualifications will first be evaluated against the prescribed screen out element, which usually appears as question 1 in the on-line questionnaire. Those applicants who appear to possess at least the minimal acceptable qualification requirement are considered for further rating; those who do not are rated ineligible and are eliminated. The potential eligibles are then rated against the remainder of the Job Elements:

• Dexterity and Safety
• Follow Directions
• Handle Weights and Loads
• Reliability And Dependability
• Special Aptitude - Food Service Work
• Work Practices

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

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. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

Resume (and/or curriculum vitae) which must include the following information for each job listed:

• Contact Information: Your name and how best to contact you, including email address and phone number.
• Job Title/Employer Name: For each relevant work experience, be sure to include the Job Title and Employer/Company name.
• Pay Plan and Grades/Step Held: (for Federal positions)
• Duties: Please be as detailed as possible. We recommend that you include information directly related to the position you are applying to.
  • Good examples of specific information can be found in the Duties and Qualifications sections of the announcement.
  • Brief descriptions of job duties should demonstrate your ability to perform the tasks at the required level as stated in the job announcement - If you have performed any of those duties or have any of that experience, we are looking for that detail on your resume.
  • • We make no assumptions about prior work experience based on job title.
    • We make no assumptions about prior work experience if you don't include the types of duties or tasks which would qualify you for the position.
  • Experience must be listed on the resume under the position in which the duties were performed.
  • For Federal applicants, this experience must be listed under the proper grade level to count towards qualifications.
• Month & year start/end dates: Include both month and year for each position start and end dates (example: June 2007 to April 2008)
• Full-time or part-time status: Include the average number of hours you worked per week (example: 40 hours per week; 32 hours per week, 20 hours per week, etc.).
• Resume Length: Maximum resume length is two (2) pages. Applicants with resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration.

(If applicable) SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action: Your most current SF-50, if you are a current or former Federal employee (VA or any other Federal Agency) must be provided. Please note the following;

• SF 50 showing your time-in-grade eligibility/length of experience/tenure 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 of specialized experience, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year of specialized experience.
• Award 50's do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying time-in-grade.
• Examples of additional/appropriate SF-50's include:
  • Within grade increases at the highest grade held; or
  • Promotions with an effective date more than one year old; or
• SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old.

Required Document(s) for Applying:

• Resume

Please review the above list(s) to ensure you have included all necessary documents required for your application. Not every applicant will require the same documents, therefore it is the applicants responsibility to ensure that their application package includes all necessary documents to determine qualifications and eligibility for appointment, such as a copy of your SF-50, transcript, ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).You will not be contacted for additional information. Applicants will be deemed ineligible if supporting documentation is not submitted.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.

Accepted Document(s) for Applying:

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• Disability Letter (VA)
• Other (1)
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Veterans' Preference: Since the Direct-Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply. Qualified veterans will, however, be given full consideration for this position.

Applications are accepted online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application.

DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority VHA OPM DHA - VA010 PACT ACT [5 CFR 337.205(b) (1)-(4)] {FWS} . for this occupation.

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