Supervisory General Engineer

Department of Labor

Mine Safety and Health Administration

MSHA, Technical Support, Mine Emergency Operations (MEO) Division

Summary

This position is with Department of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), Technical Support, Mine Emergency Operations (MEO) Division.

MSHA works to prevent death, illness and injury from mining; promote safe and healthful workplaces for U.S. miners. MSHA carries out the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (Mine Act) as amended by the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response (MINER) Act of 2006.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees whose job, agency or department was eliminated and are eligible for priority over other applicants.

Clarification from the agency

Open to all U.S. Citizens; and ICTAP/CTAP eligibles within in the local commuting area. Also advertised as job # MS-26-DAL-MSHA-13022455-WME for current federal employees in the competitive service; VEOA eligibles; Reinstatement eligibles, Land and Base Management eligibles; Military Spouses; OPM Interchange Agreement eligibles; and CTAP/ICTAP eligibles within the local commuting area. To be considered for each vacancy, apply to both announcements.

Duties

Provides engineering expertise and analyzes highly complex technical problems associated with mine emergencies, investigations, and while planning for mine emergency preparedness.
Advises the Director of Technical Support and other high-level Agency officials on a wide range of technical issues during a mine emergency and while maintaining mine emergency preparedness.
Provides national oversight and conducts internal audits of District preparedness, emergency equipment, training programs and mine emergency response plans.
Represents the Agency at national and international conferences and on committees relating to mine emergency regulations, policies, and procedures.
Plans, directs, and reviews the work of subordinate staff, comprised of engineers, scientists, and technical specialists.
Provides advice, counsel and/or instructions to individual employees on technical and administrative matters.
Coordinates MSHA mine emergency activities with State officials, labor representatives, and mine operators, as well as other equipment or service provider that may be on-site.
Identifies training needs and ensures that appropriate training is provided.
Develops, conducts, and critiques Mine Emergency Response Drills to simulate actual mine emergencies and provides evaluations and recommendations to appropriate Agency personnel and mine operators.
Provides advice on all aspects of mine explosion and fire related issues.
Disseminates complex technical, regulator and accident-related information to top Agency officials, field entities, mine operators, labor organizations, manufacturers, State Inspection agencies, other Federal Agencies, Congress, and the public.
Organizes and conducts open meetings, seminars, and symposiums to share information, improve communications, and develop relationships that will facilitate cooperation during the mine emergencies.
Directs the analysis, evaluation and testing of new systems, equipment and response techniques to further enhance emergency preparedness.
Periodically evaluates the effectiveness of the Office's efforts and programs, and institutes changes as necessary.
Advises high-level Agency officials of findings from the analysis of mine fires, explosions and other mine emergencies and offers suggestions or recommendations for proactive prevention of similar events.
Manages MSHA's mine emergency personnel including training and logistical support, and assures mine emergency readiness and preparedness.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

Must be a U.S. Citizen.
Must be at least 16 years old.
Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.
Subject to financial disclosure requirements.
Requires medical exam and must maintain physical requirements.
Requires a supervisory probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
Requires a valid driver's license.

Qualifications

In addition to the basic requirements as described in the Education section, your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience and/or additional education requirements defined below. If qualifying based on experience, be sure these types of examples are evident in your resume.

Specialized Experience is the experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the position successfully, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

For this position, specialized experience is defined as professional engineering work the demonstrates a thorough comprehensive knowledge of concepts, principles, and practices of engineering in the mining industry including knowledge of rock mechanics concepts and methods of experimental stress analysis, underground mining equipment, and a comprehensive knowledge of long-wall mining as practiced in the United States.

Must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, experience and skills to successfully perform the duties of the position.

Specialized experience must include all of the following:

Provides engineering expertise and analyzes highly complex technical problems associated with mine emergencies.
Manages mine emergency personnel, including training and logical (supplies and equipment) support, and assures mine emergency readiness and preparedness.
Experience related to conducting and participating in Mine Emergency Response Drills to simulate actual mine emergencies and provide evaluations and recommendations to appropriate Agency personnel and mine operators.
Facilitating a consensus in the face of opposing viewpoints in critical mine safety and health matters.
Plans, directs, and reviews the work of subordinate staff, comprised of engineers, scientists and other technical specialists.

Education

You must meet the Basic Requirements to qualify for Supervisor General Engineer, as described below. Transcripts must be submitted to verify education requirements.

Basic Requirement:A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.
OR
B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:

1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT), or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.

2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.

4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.)

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service.

If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum coursework requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

Additional information

Applicants must meet all legal and regulatory requirements. Reference the Required Documents section for additional requirements.

The mission of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to protect the welfare of workers and job seekers, improve working conditions, expand high-quality employment opportunities, and assure work-related benefits and rights for all workers.

Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION, REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

As a condition of employment, all personnel must undergo a background investigation for access to DOL facilities, systems, information and/or classified materials before they can enter on duty: BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION

You may not be aware, but in the regulations for agency ethics programs, there are requirements for supervisors. Section 2638.103 of Title 5 of the CFR states: Every supervisor in the executive branch has a heightened personal responsibility for advancing government ethics. It is imperative that supervisors serve as models of ethical behavior for subordinates. Supervisors have a responsibility to help ensure that subordinates are aware of their ethical obligations under the Standards of Conduct and that subordinates know how to contact agency ethics officials. Supervisors are also responsible for working with agency ethics officials to help resolve conflicts of interest and enforce government ethics laws and regulations, including those requiring certain employees to file financial disclosure reports. In addition, supervisors are responsible, when requested, for assisting agency ethics officials in evaluating potential conflicts of interest and identifying positions subject to financial disclosure requirements.

This position is subject to the confidential financial disclosure requirements of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-521). Therefore, if selected, you will be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) to determine if a conflict or an appearance of a conflict exists between your financial interest(s) and your prospective position with DOL. This information will be required annually.

All MSHA employees and their spouses, and minor children are prohibited by regulation from having any interest, direct or indirect, in any mine or mining company that may be directly affected by the work of MSHA through its investigations, technical research, or other activities. These interests are prohibited under the Department of Labor's Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct Regulations at 5 CFR 5201.105. Certain MSHA employees are required to file a financial disclosure report. For questions, please contact Wendy Elschide at elschide.wendy.m@dol.gov or 202-693-1000 X19878.

Based on agency needs, additional positions may be filled using this vacancy.

The Department of Labor may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government to attract highly qualified candidates. Click for more information on Pay, Leave, and Workforce Flexibilities.

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.

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 evaluation will be based on how well you meet the qualifications outlined in this vacancy announcement, as demonstrated through your resume and supporting documentation.

Click Application of Veterans Preference for more information.

You may preview application questions for this vacancy here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13022454

If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be evaluated against the evaluation factors below and will be placed into a category based on your vacancy question responses.

Category A - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and has successful experience in the same or similar job that has demonstrated superior proficiency in applying critical competencies required by this position to work of increased levels of difficulty and complexity.

Category B - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the critical competencies required by this position.

Category C - Meets the specialized experience described in the minimum qualification requirements section of this announcement and demonstrates proficiency in the basic competencies.

Clickhere for Evaluation details.

SME Resume Panel Review

Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will review your resume to assess your technical qualifications based on the competencies listed below. Applicants who meet the required qualifications will advance to the next stage of the hiring process.

For each below competency, SME(s) will provide a rating of 0-Not Applicable, 1-Awareness, 2-Basic, 3-Intermediate, 4-Advanced, or 5-Expert based on the content of your resume.

Evaluation Factors (Competencies) - All qualified applicants will be evaluated on the following key competencies:

Leadership
Mine Safety and Health
Planning and Evaluating
Technical Competence

The information you provide may be verified by a review of your paid, unpaid, volunteer, as it demonstrates the competencies or skills required for the position to be filled. Your evaluation may include an interview, reference checks, or other assessment conducted by HR specialists, subject matter experts, or panel members and may include other assessment tools (ex. interview, structured interview, written test, work sample, etc.).

INFORMATION FOR ICTAP/CTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP/CTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. ICTAP/CTAP eligible(s) who are Category B or higher will be considered well-qualified. Be sure to review the eligibility questions to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.

Additional Information Cont.
The Fair Chance Act (FCA) prohibits Federal agencies from requesting an applicant's criminal history information before the agency makes a conditional offer of employment. If you believe a DOL employee has violated your rights under the FCA, you may file a complaint of the alleged violation following our agency's complaint process Guidelines for Reporting Violations of the Fair Chance Act.

Note: The FCA does not apply to some positions specified under the Act, such as law enforcement or national security positions.

All Department of Labor employees are subject to the provisions of the Drug-Free Workplace Program under Executive Order 12564 and Public Law 100-71.

Required Documents

The following documents must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the vacancy closing date.

Resumes: Required and applicants must provide a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one from your profile. To receive full consideration for relevant and specialized experience, please list the month, year, and number of work hours worked for the experience listed on your resume. We also suggest that you preview the vacancy questions and confirm that your resume supports your question responses.
Veterans Documents (if applicable): To be considered as a 5-point (TP) preference eligible, you must submit a copy of your DD214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. Your DD 214 must show the type of discharge and dates of active duty. To claim 10-point (CP/CPS, XP) preference, you must submit a copy of your DD214 and the proof of entitlement of this preference, which is normally an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs certifying to the present existence of the service-connected disability and indicating the percentage of your disability. In addition, a Standard Form (SF-15) should be included, but is not required. (For active-duty service members expecting honorable or general discharge or release within 120 days, click Tentative Preference for Active Duty). For more information, go to Feds Hire Vets - Veterans Preference.
Displaced Employee Placement Documents: Only required if requesting priority consideration under CTAP or ICTAP eligibility.
Unofficial Transcript(s) (in English) - If you are using education as a basis for qualifying for this position, you must submit all applicable academic transcripts demonstrating that you meet the qualifying educational requirements (ex. BA/BS, MA, JD, PhD, etc.). If specific coursework is required to qualify, you must supply an unofficial transcript from each academic institution in which the required courses were taken in order to receive credit. You may upload your unofficial transcript(s) as one document with a maximum size limit of 5 MB.

NOTE: The OFFICIAL Transcript(s) MUST BE RECEIVED if you are selected, and prior to receiving the firm offer with a start date.

Cover Letters are not mandatory and will not be used to verify experience but may be submitted.

Do not upload password-protected documents.

Applicants selected for employment who are not current DOL employees will be required to provide proof of citizenship, and the E-Verify system will be used to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may 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.

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

Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services.

To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section.

Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration.

Important - Save your information before the 30-minute system timeout! For help, go to the USAJOBS Help Center.

STEP 1 - Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents. For each employment period, include start/end month & year and note full-time or part-time (if part-time, include # of hours worked per week) otherwise, your application may be considered incomplete.

NOTE: In alignment with the Presidential Memorandum titled Merit Hiring Plan, dated May 29, 2025, applicants may only submit a resume limited to two (2) pages. Only the résumé uploaded under the 'Resume" document type in USAJOBS will be reviewed. If the resume submitted exceeds two (2) pages, the application will be deemed ineligible for further consideration.

STEP 2 - Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS). Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the job title and then click the Apply button. For questions about the vacancy, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Proceed through the steps noted at the top of the USAJOBS page. You will be able to select a resume and documents from your USAJOBS Account that you can submit as a package as part of your DOL application. In the final step, once you have certified your application, click the Continue to agency site button.

STEP 3 - Complete the 2nd part of the application process (DOL). On the Department of Labor (DOL) page, create a DOL Account if you have not already and click Apply to this vacancy. Continue through the progress steps at the top of the DOL page. The 2nd progress step is where you answer the vacancy-specific questions. The 3rd progress step Documents is where you submit the required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the Required Documents section of this vacancy.

STEP 4 - On the Review and Submit step, verify each section of your application is complete and correct. In order to submit your application, you must have a check mark next to each section listed. If there is an X, return to the appropriate section and follow the prompts. When it is ready for submission, certify your application and click the Submit Application button.

STEP 5 - Edit Application as needed by 11:59 pm Eastern Time of Closing Date by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy, thenUpdate Application.

To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.

To view the announcement status or your application status: Visit https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/howto/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application.

NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.
For more detailed information on applying for positions with DOL click here to view the U.S. Department of Labor, How to Apply website.

Agency contact information

Wendy Elschide

Phone: 202-693-1000 X19878
Email: elschide.wendy.m@dol.gov

Address: Mine Safety and Health Administration
200 Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20210
US

Next steps

Once your complete application is received, we will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications and refer candidates for selection consideration. Candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interviews. You will be notified of the outcome. A selection is expected to be made within 30 calendar days of the issuance date of the certificate.

For instructions on how to check the status of your application, go to USAJOBS Help Guide.

USAJOBS will no longer send status alert email notifications. You can check your application status in the TAS by logging into USAJOBS and in the Applicant Dashboard, click the hiring agency Talent Acquisition System (TAS). If the TAS does not provide application tracking information, contact the agency's point of contact on the job announcement.

To verify that your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, select the Application Status link, and then select the more information link for this position. The Application 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.

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