Lead Human Resources Specialist Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. 25-ADM-KC-019 Department Offices, Boards and Divisions
Salary $120,579.00 to $156,755.00 Grade 13 to 13
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 9/15/2025 Close Date 9/19/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Status Candidates
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

This position is on the Criminal Division's (CRM) Office of Administration, Human Resources team, which supports CRM's mission of prosecuting high profile and nationally significant cases. The Human Resources team is comprised of committed and customer-focused HR professionals, and our overall workload is dynamic and fast paced. We work on routine matters related to recruitment, staffing, payroll, and employee programs, as well as many unique and exciting requests from all 17 Sections of CRM.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Current Criminal Division employees with competitive status.

Duties

This position is located on the Human Resources team, which handles the staffing and recruitment, payroll and operations, and human capital functions for the Criminal Division. The multifaceted mission of the Criminal Division requires HR Specialists to provide innovative and seasoned advice to hiring managers on issues such as creating and advertising new or unique positions, dealing with overseas assignments, payroll processes, and employee development.

As a Lead HR Specialist, the incumbent will lead a team within one or more of HR's portfolio areas: Operations & Payroll; Human Capital; or Staffing & Recruitment. Duties may include:

  • Manage the workload for assigned team of HR Specialists and HR Assistants. Keep in touch with the status and progress of work and make day-to-day adjustments in accordance with established with established priorities.
  • Develop instructions and standard operating procedures to ensure the work of team members is completed in a timely manner and according to established processes.
  • Prepare and present briefings and trainings on assigned team's portfolios.
  • Compile reports on program activities and respond to related data calls.
  • Interact with counterparts across the Criminal Division, Department of Justice, Office of Personnel Management, and U.S. government on assignments, as required.
  • Assist in preparing for audits.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to qualify for this position.
  • You must undergo a pre-employment security investigation.
  • Selective Service Registration is required, as applicable.
  • You must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
  • You must meet status eligibility for this announcement.
  • Direct Deposit: All federal employees are required to have federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
  • A one-year probationary period may be required.
  • The Criminal Division participates in the Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification Program. E-Verify helps employers to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. For more information, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.

Qualifications

To qualify at the GS-13 level, applicants must have one-year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-12 federal grade level. This experience must include duties such as: drafting human resources internal operating procedures; compiling reports on human resources program activities; responding to data calls; and reviewing policies and regulations to determine impact to human resources programs.

Time-in-Grade: Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements for consideration by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

There is no education requirement for this position.

Additional information

ELIGIBILITY:
You are eligible under merit promotion procedures, if you meet one of the following criteria:


Additional selections may be made from this vacancy announcement to fill vacancies that occur subsequent to this announcement.

EEO Statement: The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, age, membership in an employee organization, or other non-merit factor. Additional information on DOJ's EEO policy can be found on our website.

Career Transition Programs (CTAP or ICTAP): These programs apply to Federal and/or DOJ employees who meet the definition of surplus or displaced from a position in the competitive service. To receive selection priority for this position, you must:
  1. Meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria;
  2. Be rated well-qualified for the position with a score of 85 or above based on the competencies listed above; and
  3. Submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, please reach out to criminal.crmjobs@usdoj.gov or (202) 514-0361 for alternative application procedures.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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.

Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are basically qualified for this job, you will be invited to complete a structured interview. The structured interview will assess the following competencies:

  • Accountability
  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Oral Communication
  • Problem Solving

Performance Appraisals and Awards:
You will receive an additional point added to your final score for your most recent fully successful or higher performance rating. An additional point will also be added to your final score for any one performance award received within the past three years that relates to the position for which you are applying. Please provide only one recent award. To receive credit, you must provide a copy of your performance rating and a copy of your performance award SF-50, if applicable.

Required Documents

You are strongly encouraged to convert your resume to an Adobe PDF file prior to submitting your application, especially if you are submitting using a Mac system. Resumes not pre-converted to a PDF file will undergo conversion by the system. This conversion process may cause some formatting changes to your resume, including line and page break errors. To ensure your submitted resume does not display with formatting issues, please submit your resume as a PDF. This error does not affect USAjobs resumes.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete application package which includes:

  1. Resume (cover letter is optional) - Applicants will be evaluated based on a comparison of the position requirements against the quality and extent of experience or related education as reflected in their resume. Applicants are encouraged to ensure work experiences clearly show the possession of knowledge of the subject matter pertinent to the position and the technical skills to successfully perform the duties of the position. Your resume must be no more than 2 pages. If more than 2 pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications. Please ensure all information you believe is qualifying for the position is contained in the first two pages, or you may be marked ineligible. Additionally, your resume must include the following information for each job listed: month and year, start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008), and full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week).
  2. SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (if applying as a status candidate with current or former federal service) which shows type of service appointment, tenure group, grade, and salary. If you are applying for a higher grade, please provide the SF-50 Form which shows the length of time you have been in your current/highest grade (examples of appropriate SF-50s include Promotions, Within Grade/Range Increases, and SF-50s over one year old).
  3. Most Recent Performance Appraisal.
  4. Any Relevant Performance Award (must attach SF-50)(if applicable).
  5. Documentation of Eligibility for Special Hiring Authorities (if applicable) to prove appointment eligibility. Examples include: Schedule A disability letter, Peace Corps volunteer letter, military spouse hiring authority documentation, etc.
  6. Current or Former Political Appointees (if applicable) - Please note on your resume and attach an SF-50. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office.
  7. Schedule A Documentation (if applicable) - The Criminal Division welcomes and encourages applications from persons with disabilities and is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advanced on the basis of merit within the Department. The Criminal Division also encourages eligible Schedule A applicants to submit their resumes directly to the Criminal Division disability POC Areli Parada, at Areli.Parada@usdoj.gov.
  8. CTAP or ICTAP Documentation (if applicable) - If you are a displaced Federal employee claiming eligibility under CTAP or ICTAP:
    • You must submit your separation notice or agency RIF letter from your agency.
    • If you have not yet been separated, you can provide the letter of intent to separate you from the agency because of reduction-in-force.
    • See USAJOBS' Career Transition Programs for more information.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete application package which includes the assessment questionnaire and the required documents indicated below. The application package must be received by 11:59 PM, Eastern Time, on 09/19/2025.

We recommend that you preview the online questions for this announcement before you start the application process. You may preview the assessment questionnaire by clicking https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12797796.

To begin the process, click the Apply Online button to create an account or log in to your existing USAJOBS account. Follow the prompts to complete the assessment questionnaire. Please ensure you click the "Submit My Answers" button at the end of the process.

To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.

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.

Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the Human Capital staff at Human.capital@usdoj.gov. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Agency contact information

Human Resources
Address
Office of Administration
c/o Human Resources
1400 New York Avenue NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20004
US

Next steps

Once the application package is received you will receive an acknowledgement email that your submission was successful. After a review of your complete application is made you will be notified of your qualification status. Qualified candidates will be invited to complete a structured interview. After the structured interview, you will be notified if you've been referred to the hiring manager. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. If a tentative job offer is made, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.


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