Summary
The San Diego Healthcare System is currently recruiting for A Food Service Worker (Ingredient Control) to work in Nutrition and Food Services. The primary purpose of this position is to serve as Food Service Workers for Nutrition and Food Service (N&FS) and are responsible to follow set procedures in accomplishing repetitive assignments and follow an established sequence of work.
This job is open to
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.
Duties
Major duties are below but not limited to:
- On a daily basis, the employee receives and inspects food and supply items delivered by vendors and Supply Chain Management, checks for accuracy of quantity and quality of items received, and reports discrepancies to supervisor.
- Maintains inventory; checks condition of perishable items to prevent food spoilage and loss. Stores items correctly, rotating stock using FIFO (first in first out) principle to prevent spoilage, and for use by expiration date.
- Keeps appropriate records related to the receipt and distribution of food items and non-food supplies.
- Employee screens and identifies shipping and receiving documents for discrepancies.
- As needed, prepares master order for food and non-food deliveries; uses proper techniques to measure and portion dry, fat, and liquid ingredients when issuing ingredients.
- Works collaboratively with production cooks in the ingredient control process to maintain a smooth production operation.
- Delivers ingredients and/or supplies to preparation and service areas to meet production and service schedules.
- Routinely prepares subsistence and non-food supply orders, making adjustments based on an existing inventory.
- Records refrigerator/freezer temperatures per established schedules, reporting discrepancies to the supervisor.
- Using thawing guide breaks out frozen food according to menu/census information.
- Frozen perishable items being readied for issue are transported from freezer to appropriate refrigerator, taken out of cases or crates in sufficient time for the items to reach the desired thawed condition.
- Follows strict security guidelines to protect food and non-food supplies from pilferage.
- Maintains order in storage areas to ensure easier access, expediting issuances and the inventory process. Signs for receiving reports for food and supplies.
- Maintains the inventory of supplies and inventory records as required.
- Enters inventory results into Computrition or similar software.
- Uses a computer terminal to record and retrieve recipe, menu and inventory data and to produce printouts of such information for various work units in the kitchen.
- Operates all equipment in the assigned area and maintains it in sanitary condition.
- Cleans assigned working area and ensures storeroom and storage refrigerators are maintained in a clean, orderly and organized manner.
- Assures products moving through the system are maintained in accordance with Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP), or similar accepted methodology.
- Participates in the NFS Dietetic Internship Program by conducting orientation sessions with the dietetic interns.
Work Schedule: Variable, rotating day and Holidays off.
Position Description Title/PD#: Food Service Worker-Ingredient Control Worker/PD11798O
Physical Requirements: Must be able to carry and/or lift large food containers and move heavily loaded carts and pallets. Must use proper body mechanics. Incumbent is subject to continuous standing and walking, frequent stopping, reaching, pushing, stretching, pulling and bending. Work requires frequent and/or continuous lifting, carrying, moving, and pushing heavy items up to 50 pounds, unassisted, and occasionally lift or move objects weighing over 40 pounds with assistance of lifting devices or other workers. Items may include cases of supplies, heavy carts (up to 400 pounds) and filled garbage cans, among others. The employee sweeps, vacuums, and spot mops floors as assigned, and may be required to use powered cleaning equipment; works with a variety of cleaning compounds, chemicals and detergents. Work is performed under pressure with strict deadlines. Work requires concentration for prolonged periods of time while performing duties, accepting some interruption of work, and allowing for prompt resumption of the task at hand.
Requirements
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:
- Interpret Instructions, Specifications (other than blueprint reading)
- Materials
- Technical Practices
- Without more than normal supervision
- 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.
Education
This job does not have an education qualification requirement.
Benefits
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefits
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
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. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.
Required Documents
Documents Required:
NOTE: Effective 9/29/2025 all submitted applications must contain resumes limited to two-pages in length and anything longer is prohibited. Only the first two-pages will be considered for qualification purposes for this announcement.
Documents Accepted:
- Cover Letter
- DD-214/ Statement of Service
- Disability Letter (Schedule A)
- Disability Letter (VA)
- License
- Professional Certification
- Resume
- SF-15
- SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
- Transcript
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.
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.
How to Apply
All applicants are encouraged to apply online.
To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 10/14/2025 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12810340.
1. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
2. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package.
NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.
Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed.
Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement.
Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume:
- Prioritize most relevant and recent experience
- Use concise, results focused language
- Align language from the job announcement
- Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies
- Remove outdated or unrelated experience
- Use the USAJOBS resume builder
Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at:
To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click
Update Application in the vacancy announcement. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
Next steps
After the vacancy announcement closes, applicants are evaluated to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email.