Secretary Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. CO-2024-0345 Department Justice, Bureau of Prisons/Federal Prison System
Salary $61,933.00 to $88,926.00 Grade 08 to 09
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 5/15/2024 Close Date 6/6/2024
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DC


Job Description (Please follow all instructions carefully)

Summary

Corrections professionals who foster a humane and secure environment and ensure public safety by preparing individuals for successful reentry into our communities.

Our highly-skilled, diverse, and innovative workforce creates a strong foundation of safety and security. Through the principles of humanity and normalcy, we develop good neighbors.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

• Current Federal Employees nationwide • Former Federal Employees (Reinstatement Eligible) • Surplus and Displaced (CTAP or ICTAP) Federal Employees in the local commuting area • Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) • Current and Former Land Management employees eligible under Public Law 114-47 • Military Spouses Executive Order 13832 • Division: Office of General Counsel, Assistant Director's Office, Central Office • Duty Location: Washington, DC

Duties

Responsible for retrieving controlled correspondence assigned by the Executive Secretary and assigning the correspondence to the appropriate subject matter expert for response.

Determines the needs of the office for the year, order supplies as needed, and tracks spending to ensure that expenditures do not exceed the allocated funds.

Checks the Assistant Director/General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel's schedules for availability and coordinates alternate dates with staff requesting the meeting when necessary.

Provides guidance and assistance as requested to division clerical staff in such areas as correspondence, telephone procedures, and directives and reports.

Receives visitors and telephone calls to the office, determines the nature of requests and directs callers to appropriate staff, or personally providing the information desired when routine or procedural matters of the office are involved.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is Required.
  • See Special Conditions of Employment Section.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP). The ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1)this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and score 85 or better on established ranking criteria. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application of ICTAP eligibility or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility is at: Click Here

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the Department of Justice with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your Department of Justice component has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP eligibility, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and score 85 or better on established ranking criteria. You must provide a copy of your written notification of CTAP eligibility with your application. Additional information about CTAP eligibility is at: Click Here

Qualifications

To be considered for the position, you must meet the following qualification requirements:

Education:

As a general rule, education is not creditable above GL-05 for most positions covered by this standard; however, graduate education may be credited in those few instances where the graduate education is directly related to the work of the position.

OR

Experience:

GS-08 and GS-09: You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade level in federal service. To be creditable, this experience must have equipped the applicant with the particular qualifications to perform successfully the duties of the position and must typically be in or related to the position to be filled.

Some examples of this qualifying experience are:

GS-08:

  • Experience in screening and referring telephone calls and visitors, reviewing incoming correspondence and routing to the appropriate staff member or supervisor for action. Reviewing outgoing correspondence and reports for content, grammatical accuracy and conformance to established standards.
  • Experience in maintaining the departmental calendar, coordinating meetings and conferences, managing the office budget and performing time and attendance functions.
  • Experience in utilizing automated programs and systems to prepare correspondence and reports, to track and ensure compliance with suspense dates and to maintain departmental files.

GS-09:

  • Experience in managing the administrative operations of the office, including enhancing the workflow and office process/operations.
  • Experience in reviewing incoming correspondence and determining proper action. Reviewing outgoing correspondence and reports ensuring proper format, mathematical correctness, correct grammatical content, and ascertaining that all necessary coordination of facts has been completed and is in accordance with established policy.
  • Experience in responding to routine and non-technical requests for information such as status of reports, suspense dates for matters requiring compliance and similar information readily available from files.
  • Experience in tracking and preparing reports on time sensitive correspondence, establishing and maintaining records and files, and collecting information and retrieving data from automated systems for various projects and reporting purposes.

If applicable, credit will be given for paid and unpaid experience. To receive proper credit, you must show the actual time (such as the number of hours worked per week) spent in activities.

**Your eligibility for consideration will be based on your responses to the questions in the application.**

Education

See Qualifications Section for education requirements, if applicable.

ONLY if education is a requirement/substitution for specialized experience, applicant MUST upload legible transcripts as verification of educational requirement. Transcripts MUST be uploaded and electronically linked from USAJOBS at the time you apply and MUST include identifying information to include School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, Click Here.

Foreign Education: For information regarding foreign education requirements, please see Foreign Diploma and Credit Recognition at the U.S. Department of Education website: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.

If you are selected for this position and qualified based on education (i.e. basic education requirement and/or substitution of education), you will be required to provide an OFFICIAL transcript prior to your first day on duty.

Additional information

This position IS NOT included in the bargaining unit.

The representative rate for this position is $75,245 per annum ($36.05 per hour).

Special Conditions of Employment Section:

Appointment is subject to satisfactory completion of a urinalysis, physical, and background investigation.  All applicants are subject to National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and credit checks.

The addresses listed on the USAJOBS account/resume must be the primary residence at the time of application.  You may be required to provide proof of residence.

Additional selections may be made if vacancies occur within the life of the certificate.

Current Federal Law Enforcement Employees:

This is a non-law enforcement clerical or administrative support position (one-grade interval). Individuals selected for these positions will lose law enforcement coverage and will need to return to a position with "primary" law enforcement coverage to regain coverage.

As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects the diverse experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.

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.

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.

If your composite score exceeds the average score for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your online assessment questionnaire responses and utilized to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed in this announcement. If you rate yourself higher than what is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If you are found to be among the top candidates, you will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration.

There are several parts of the application process that affect the overall evaluation of your application:

  • Your resume, which is part of your USAJOBS profile;
  • Your responses to the eligibility questions;
  • Your responses to the online assessment questionnaire;
  • Your supporting documentation, if required.

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

Experience that would not normally be part of the Federal employee's position is creditable when documented by satisfactory evidence (e.g., a memorandum from the manager, Human Resource Manager, SF-52, etc.) 

If you applied to more than one grade level, BE ADVISED that you may be selected at ANY grade level for which you applied and are found qualified (i.e., if the job is announced at the 9/11 grade levels and you apply for the GS/GL-9 and the GS-11,and you are found qualified at BOTH grade levels, you may be selected at either grade level).

What Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities are Required for this Position?

The following Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA's) are required:

GS-08 and GS-09:

  • Ability to relate and deal effectively with supervisors, peers and others.
  • Ability to communicate in writing, including the ability to proofread and edit documents prepared by others.
  • Ability to organize the workflow of clerical and administrative support functions.
  • Ability to work with data on a computer.

You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Required Documents

  • Resume showing relevant experience (cover letter optional).
  • In order to receive credit for experience contained in a resume, your employment history must be documented in month/year format (MM/YYYY), reflecting starting date and ending date and include the number of hours worked per week. Failure to follow this format may result in disqualification.
  • Current or former Federal employees NOT employed by the Bureau of Prisons MUST submit a copy of their SF-50 Form which shows competitive service appointment, tenure group, and salary. If you have promotion potential in your current position, please provide proof. If you are applying for a higher grade, and your experience was gained at a Federal agency other than the Bureau of Prisons, you MUST provide the SF-50 Form which verifies the length of time you have been in your highest grade and supports your claim for time in grade.
  • Employees applying with an interchange agreement must provide proof of their permanent appointment.
  • Current federal employees NOT employed by the BOP and former federal employees MUST submit a copy of their latest yearly performance appraisal/evaluation.
  • Military Spouses who meet the requirement of Executive Order 13832 - must include marriage certificate and copy of active duty military members orders OR letter from VA OR DD214 describing 100% disability of spouse, OR SF-50. For more information Click Here.
  • Documentation supporting eligibility for consideration under the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA) includes a DD-214 Member 4 copy and/or VA Letter.
  • ICTAP/CTAP, Click Here, if applicable.
  • A college transcript which includes the School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded, if applicable. (Note: If you are selected for this position, official transcript(s) will be required prior to your first day.)

Failure to provide these documents could possibly result in removal from consideration for this vacancy. If uploading documentation, do not identify/save your documents utilizing a special character such as %, #, @, etc. Documentation should be identified/saved as VA Letter, DD214, or Transcripts.

We cannot be held responsible for incompatible software, delays in mail service, applicant application errors, etc.

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

You must apply through the online application system at www.USAJOBS.gov. Follow the prompts to register, answer a few questions and submit all required documents.

NOTE:  Submission of a resume alone is not a complete application. This position may require the completion of additional forms and/or supplemental materials as described under the Required Documents section. Please carefully review the complete job announcement and the "How to Apply" instructions. Failure to provide the required information and/or materials will result in your application not being considered for employment.

Required supporting documentation must be electronically uploaded or transferred from USAJOBS (uploaded).

All required supporting documentation MUST be received by the Consolidated Staffing Unit by 11:59 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on the closing date of the vacancy announcement.  You MUST include the vacancy announcement number on your supporting documentation.

NOTE: Failure to follow these application procedures will result in the applicant losing consideration for this position.

Paper applications: If applying online is impossible, please contact the Consolidated Staffing Unit at the telephone number listed below, prior to the closing date of the announcement for the alternate application procedure.

Contact for Assistance in Applying On-Line:
DOJ, Federal Bureau of Prisons
Consolidated Staffing Unit
346 Marine Forces Drive
Grand Prairie, TX  75051
E-Mail:  BOP-HRM-HRSC-ConsolidatedStaffingUnit-S@bop.gov
Phone:  972-352-4200     

How do I Apply for this Position if I am a Military Spouse applying under the Special Hiring Authority?

Military Spouses who meet the requirement of Executive Order 13832 MUST include the vacancy announcement number on all supporting documentation, as well as the appointing authority used. For more information Click Here.

To be considered for this Special Hiring Authority, applicants must submit package to BOP-HRM-HRSC-ConsolidatedStaffingUnit-S@bop.gov.

  • Submit a complete/detailed resume.
  • Address selective factor, if required.
  • Resume must contain all information listed in the Qualifications Section.
  • Submit supporting documents (i.e. transcripts, certification, registration, and/or license, if applicable).

Your completed application packet must be submitted to the Consolidated Staffing Unit by 11:59 p.m., Eastern Standard Time (EST), on the closing date of the vacancy announcement.  You must include the last four digits of your social security number and the vacancy announcement number on your application packet.  DO NOT SUBMIT AN APPLICATION ON-LINE.

Agency contact information

CSU

Address

JUSTICE, BUREAU OF PRISONS
Consolidated Staffing Unit
346 Marine Forces Drive
Grand Prairie, Texas 75051
United States
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the application process has been completed. Normally, Selecting Officials will make a selection within 90-days. When deemed necessary, the selection process may be extended up to 180-days from the date the certificate(s), (Exception, Best Qualified Lists) is/are generated to make a selection.


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