Duties

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is calling on those who want to help protect American interests and secure our Nation. DHS Components work collectively to prevent terrorism; secure borders and our transportation systems; protect the President and other dignitaries; enforce and administer immigration laws; safeguard cyberspace; and ensure resilience to disasters. We achieve these vital missions through a diverse workforce spanning hundreds of occupations. Make an impact; join DHS.

When disaster strikes, America looks to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Now FEMA looks to you. Join our team and use your talent to support Americans in their times of greatest need. FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages Federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. We foster innovation, reward performance and creativity, and provide challenges on a routine basis with a well-skilled, knowledgeable, high performance workforce. Please visit www.fema.gov for additional information.

Local Hire employees:

• Help FEMA respond to, recover from and mitigate all hazards by performing a variety of emergency management functions which are not limited to disaster survivor assistance, conducting and verifying damage assessments, and providing administrative, financial and logistical support.
• A local hire's term of employment is 120 days. Local Hire appointments may be extended, in 120 day increments, for a maximum 365 day appointment, based on the needs of the disaster.
• Work within 23 different Cadres which are groups of personnel organized by operational function and FEMA Qualification System (FQS) position.
• Each Local Hire is hired to a position within a Cadre based on his or her skills and experience.

FEMA is seeking candidates with experience in call center customer service. As a customer representative, you will assist with disaster response and recovery efforts. The ideal candidate will possess strong computer, communication, interpersonal and customer service skills.

In this position, you will serve as a call center Customer Representative, completing the initial disaster assistance registration procedure: processing a variety of claims or request for disaster assistance; and/or providing various types of information regarding available programs to people applying for disaster assistance by telephone after a Presidential-declared disaster. This position may require you to work in a virtual environment. If selected you may be required to complete a Telework Application and Agreement; and the Employee Self Certification and Health List, as well as completion of telework training.

Typical assignments include:

• Managing incoming and outgoing calls.
• Conducting telephone interviews with survivors who have been affected by a declared disaster.
• Providing disaster assistance program overviews and application assistance to disaster survivors.
• Providing status updates for preliminary casework and/or determinations.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen to be considered for this position.
• You must successfully pass a background investigation.
• Selective service registration is required for males born after 12/31/59.
• Please review "Other Information" section for additional conditions.

To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo, successfully pass, and maintain a background investigation for Moderate Risk as a condition of placement into this position. This may include a credit check after initial job qualifications are determined, a review of financial issues, such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs (please visit: Mythbuster on Federal Hiring Policies for additional information). For more information on background investigations for Federal jobs please visit OPM Investigations .

Please ensure you meet the qualification requirements described below.

Qualifications

FEMA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Salaries are comparable to local pay rates.

FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

STAFFORD ACT EXCEPTED SERVICE APPOINTMENTS: The Local Hire Program is an appointment type granted under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Section 306 (b), which authorizes FEMA to appoint such temporary employees as necessary to accomplish work authorized under the Act. Appointments under this authority within FEMA are made to the excepted service and are nonpermanent in nature.

To qualify for this position, you must possess experience:

• Providing telephone support to customers in support of an organization or business;
• Utilizing computer software to process customer information; and,
• Reviewing information for accuracy.

IN ADDITION:

• Minimum age of eighteen years of age is required.
• All candidates must be a high school graduate or possess a GED.

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.

Your application must show that you meet all requirements for this position. You may be found "not qualified" if you do not possess the minimum competencies required for the position.

NOTE: Qualifications are based on breadth/level of experience. In addition to describing duties performed, applicants must provide the exact dates of each period of employment (from MM/YY to MM/YY) and the number of hours worked per week if part time. As qualification determinations cannot be made when resumes do not include the required information, failure to provide this information may result in disqualification. Applicants are encouraged to use the USAJOBS Resume Builder to develop their federal resume. For a brief video on How to Create a Federal Resume, click here.

Current or former FEMA Reservists/DAE employees: To accurately credit your experience for these intermittent positions, make sure to list the dates (from MM/YY to MM/YY) of each deployment, along with the job title and specific duties you were responsible for during each deployment. Failure to provide this information may result in disqualification.

Education

NOTE : If you are qualifying based on education and/or are selected for a position which requires a college degree to meet minimum qualification requirements, you will be required to submit your official college transcript(s) at time of selection.

Additional information

• Local hire positions are full time, temporary positions.
• If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment , and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.
• DHS uses E-verify, an internet based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify , including your rights and responsibilities.
• This announcement may be used to fill one or more vacancies.
• NOTE: Lodging and travel from your residence of record to your duty station in Denton, TX; Winchester, VA; or Hyattsville, MD will not be reimbursed.
• Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.