Clarification from the agency

MERIT PROMOTION (MP) VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT - Current Federal employees with competitive status; Former Federal employees with reinstatement eligibility; CTAP/ICTAP eligibles; Veterans with VOW, VEOA, or 30% disability; Military Spouses, Peace Corps, and those eligible under an OPM interchange agreement.

The incumbent serves as an HR Specialist located in the Office of Human Resources Management.  The incumbent is responsible for the implementation and oversight of CPSC’s Personnel Suitability Program and will conduct background investigations and will manage the enrollment and unenrollment of people in Trusted Workforce utilizing the services of Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA).

As an HR Specialist (Employee Relations/Suitability), you will:

• Assist in Reviewing Referrals and Investigations - Ensures suitability referrals are appropriate, complete, and within OPM jurisdiction; identifies routine issues and refers complex cases to senior specialists.
• Conduct Information Gathering - Makes calls or sends written inquiries to clarify or resolve suitability issues and gathers evidence necessary for case assessment.
• Support Case Review and Closure - Assists in reviewing completed cases to determine if suitability actions are warranted and closes routine cases under supervision.
• Prepare Draft Summaries and Correspondence - Drafts summaries of issues, evidence, and correspondence for review; communicates with agencies, personnel, applicants and appointees, sources of information, and OPM offices on basic suitability matters.
• Assist with Projects and New Initiatives - Supports higher-graded specialists in suitability-related projects, policy updates, and training initiatives undertaken by the Adjudications office.
• Coordinate personnel vetting activities with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA), ensuring an efficient, compliant process.
• Develop and manage relevant policies and procedures to ensure compliance with current personnel vetting initiatives.
• Serve as CPSC’s Personnel Suitability/Security advisor for staff and external partners, properly addressing inquiries, and handling unfavorable determinations regarding suitability or eligibility.
• Evaluate and adjudicate reports of investigation. Conduct additional inquiries to gather all information needed to assess suitability or eligibility to access national security information — applying sound judgment to uphold suitability/security standards.
• Responsible for initiating and reviewing completed Standard Form 85, 85P, 86, Personnel Vetting Questionnaires and other questionnaires.
• Communicate with applicants, employees, and contractors when processing suitability/security packages and requesting updated suitability/security forms.
• Provide and notify employees of PIV certificate expirations.
• Develop, implement, and evaluate personnel suitability/security policies and procedures, ensuring alignment with laws, regulations, and agency or corporation directives, while collaborating with internal and external customers/stakeholders to achieve organizational priorities; AND
• Review complex suitability/security cases by analyzing adverse information to make or recommend final suitability, fitness, or security eligibility determinations.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship Required.
• A background investigation is required.
• Must meet education requirements.

Must be a U.S. Citizen.

This is a Public Trust Position. Employment in this position requires a background investigation. If you are selected and cannot meet the criteria requirement for the pre-employment waiver and/or a favorable suitability determination within a reasonable period of time due to disclosed or undisclosed background issues, the employment offer may be withdrawn.

If you are a male born after December 31, 1959 you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. Please see http://www.sss.gov for more information.

Selectees will be required to complete a "Declaration of Federal Employment", (OF-306), prior to appointment and the appropriate background investigation forms to determine suitability for Federal employment.  False statements or responses on these forms can jeopardize your employment opportunity and subject you to disciplinary action, including removal from Federal service.

The selectee will be required to complete a Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process that requires two forms of identification from the I-9 Form. We will compare information provided on the I-9 Form to records available from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.  The system confirms employee’s identity and eligibility to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period (depending on your status) 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 CPSC;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the CPSC 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

All applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the candidate with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position.

Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

GS-12: a) reviewing background investigation reports to determine whether the information is complete, accurate, and sufficient to support suitability, fitness, credentialing, or national security determinations; b) adjudicating personnel vetting cases across multiple domains to apply federal standards and make initial trust determinations; c) updating and maintaining personnel vetting information in automated systems (such as NBIS, eAPP, PIPS/CVS, DISS, or USAccess) to ensure accurate processing and documentation of cases; AND d) coordinating with relevant stakeholders to gather required documentation and support onboarding and continuous vetting activities.

GS-13: a) managing complex personnel vetting programs or case work to interpret federal vetting standards, resolve unusual or high-risk issues, and make independent trust determinations with minimal supervision; b) developing or updating personnel vetting policies, procedures, or quality controls to ensure compliance with requirements for the Suitability and Security Executive Agents and improve program effectiveness; c) configuring or overseeing personnel vetting system workflows (such as NBIS initiation, review, authorization, or continuous vetting functions) to support agency-wide vetting activities; AND d) representing the agency in meetings, workgroups, or interagency engagements to provide expert advice, coordinate personnel vetting activities, and support shared suitability/security initiatives.

Evidence of the above specialized experience must be supported by detailed documentation of duties performed in positions held.  Your resume is the key means we have for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position. Therefore, we encourage you to be clear and specific when describing your experience. We will not make assumptions regarding your experience or based on job titles alone.  If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

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. 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.

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; religious; 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.

Applicants must meet the qualifications for this position by the closing date of this announcement.

How you will be evaluated

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

After the vacancy closes, we will review your application package to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position. If you meet the minimum qualifications, your responses to the assessment, resume and supporting documentation will then be reviewed. The best-qualified candidates will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited to an interview.

RESUME: All applicants are required to submit a resume limited to two (2) pages (i.e., 1 page that is double-sided or 2 pages that are one-sided each) showing all relevant experience.

CTAP/ICTAP candidates will be eligible for selection priority if it is determined that they have exceeded the minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a "well qualified" rating (Rating of at least 85 out of 100).

Please ensure that your resume contains specific information such as position titles, beginning and ending dates of employment for each position, average number of hours worked per week, salary, duties performed for each position, and if the position is/was in the Federal government, you should provide the position series and grade level/pay band.

Your package must be complete and submitted in the manner specified in this section.  Packages that are submitted in any other manner without prior approval from the agency point of contact will not be considered.

A complete application includes: 1. Resume; 2. Vacancy question responses; and 3. Submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible).

Your resume must clearly demonstrate, in two pages or less, how your skills and experiences align with the "Qualifications" section and support your questionnaire responses. We cannot assume required experience based on your work or academic history. If your resume exceeds two pages, only the first two will be reviewed.

You may use the USAJOBS Resume Builder or upload your own resume. If uploading, ensure it includes all required information and is organized so we can match the following to each position:

1. Job title
2. Employer name
3. Employment dates (MM/DD/YYYY)
4. Hours worked per week (full-time assumed; part-time prorated)
5. Detailed duties, accomplishments, skills, responsibilities, and supervisory details (if applicable)
6. Series and grade or equivalent (for federal positions, if applicable)

Do not include a photograph or video of yourself, or any sensitive information (age, date of birth, marital status, social security number, etc.) on your resume or cover letter. We will not access web pages linked on your resume or cover letter to determine your qualifications.

Current Federal Employees: If you are a current you must submit a copy of your most recent SF Form 50, Notification of Personnel Action, that shows: (1) permanent or career-conditional tenure (codes 1 or 2, in block 24), and (2) position occupied in the competitive service (code 1, in block 34). To be considered as a competitive eligible candidate, the SF-50 must show the highest grade level or promotion potential level applicant has attained competitively and grade must be equivalent or higher than the grade for which applying. Indicate on your application the highest permanent grade you have held; if this grade is different from your current grade, submit a copy of an additional SF-50 showing this grade.

Reinstatement: If you are a former federal employee (separated from Federal service for at least 1 year) and you want to be considered as a non-competitively eligible for reinstated to a higher grade or full performance level than which you left federal employment, then you MUST provide a copy of your separation SF-50 (the "position occupied" block on the SF-50 should show a "1" and your "tenure" block should show a "1" or "2") AND your most recent performance appraisal that you received from your federal employment which shows at least a fully successful rating.

Veterans' Preference (If Applicable) - If claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge. Ten-point preference eligibles must also submit an Application for 10-point Veteran Preference, SF-15, along with the required documentation listed on the back of the SF-15 form. For more information on veterans' preference view FedsHireVets.

CTAP/ICTAP eligibles must annotate your questionnaire to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP/ICTAP eligible and you must submit appropriate documentation (such as: 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).

If you are eligible for special hiring authority, please indicate this when you apply, and submit the supporting documentation for proof of eligibility for the special hiring authority, such as disability, Peace Corps service, Interchange Agreement, etc.

Other documents identified in this announcement.

All supplemental documents must be submitted electronically before the closing date of this vacancy announcement. You have two choices for submitting your supplemental documents:
1. Download from your USAJOBS account; or
2. Upload your file(s)

Failure to submit required documents, based upon how you apply, may result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted. Official documents are not required at the time of application, copies are sufficient. If selected, official documentation must be submitted prior to appointment.

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