Duties

Summary

Securing Travel, Protecting People - At the Transportation Security Administration, you will serve in a high-stakes environment to safeguard the American way of life. In cities across the country, you would secure airports, seaports, railroads, highways, and/or public transit systems, thus protecting America's transportation infrastructure and ensuring freedom of movement for people and commerce. For additional information about our agency please: Click Here

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

This Human Resources Specialist position is located in the Human Capital, Enterprise Support, Worklife Programs (Drug and Alcohol Free Workplace Program), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Duties include but are not limited to:

• Serves as a HR Specialist and team member responsible for day-to-day operation of TSA's Work Life Wellness/EAP programs providing Internal and external guidance on the application of existing Work Life programs and services.
  
• Administers multiple work life projects, objectives, activities and resources to mitigate employee work life and wellness related risks that can have far reaching effects on TSA operations and/or large groups of employees.
  
• Ensure program is administered in accordance with regulatory authority, policy and established procedures (Federal Regulations, Executive Orders, DHS and TSA Directives, Internal Program Standard Operating Procedures).
  
• Researches, develops and conducts analysis and studies in order to identify and recommend improvements and efficiencies within the Work Life Wellness program.
  
• Makes formal recommendations to leadership based on analysis findings. Studies require varied subjects and both qualitative data collecting, including: client needs assessments, supervisor and new hire training, management and employee communications, and marketing initiatives.
  
• Provides guidance to frontline employees, supervisors as well as senior leadership on work-life balance and holistic health issues. Educates, motivates and engages employees and management staff in all aspects of work-life balance and wellness.
  

The major duties described above reflect the full performance level of this position. Typically, the lower pay band (G Band) performs the same duties but will receive more guidance and training; and/or projects/work assignments may be less complex.

This position is also being announced through Government Wide procedures under Announcement #HQ-ES-HC-19-619650-G. Candidates who wish to be considered under both Public (US Citizens) and Government-Wide procedures must apply to both announcements.

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
H

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must possess U.S. Citizenship or be a U.S. National.
• You must complete a favorable Background Investigation (BI).
• Selective Service registration is required.
• See additional "Conditions of Employment" and "Other Information" section

Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.

Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change.

Qualifications

To qualify for the SV-G Pay Band (equivalent to GS-11), you must have one year of specialized experience at the SV-F Pay Band or GS-9 in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private sector. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Specialized experience is defined as:

• Providing individual counseling on a variety of Work Life Wellness programs (i.e. Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Drug and Alcohol, Reasonable Accommodation, Crisis - Intervention, Newcomers Orientation, Childcare & Eldercare Referrals, Health and Fitness and etc.);
• Preparing correspondence, reports, charts and other documents for senior specialist; AND
• Assisting with the development and delivery of presentations on services and activities.

OR
B. Education: Completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in a field related to this position; OR three (3) full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree.

OR
C. Combining of Education and Experience: Combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the second year) and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for this position, and may be computed by first determining your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the band level; then determining your education as a percentage of the education required for the band level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for the position

To qualify for the SV-H Pay Band (equivalent to GS-12), you must have one year of specialized experience at the SV-G or GS-11 in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private sector. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Specialized experience is defined as

• Providing individual, group, and senior level counseling on a variety of Work Life Wellness programs (i.e. i.e. Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Drug and Alcohol, Reasonable Accommodation, Crisis - Intervention, Newcomers Orientation, Childcare & Eldercare Referrals, Health and Fitness and etc.);
• Developing procedures for assessing the effectiveness of administrative processes impacting Work Life Wellness programs; AND
• Planning program events (such as health fairs), developing educational materials, marketing materials, training aids and publishing wellness program articles.

Desirable Factors (DFs) : DFs are competencies and/or knowledge, skills, and/or abilities (KSAs) that, in addition to basic qualification requirements, could be expected to significantly enhance the effectiveness of the person selected for the position and may be identified and used to rank candidates as part of a competitive process.

The Desirable Factor for this position is as follows: Coordinating activities in support of alcohol and drug abuse prevention programs to include overseeing and tracking of formal drug/alcohol testing procedures and results; AND providing advice on the procedural and legal requirements for addressing conduct and performance in the area of drug and alcohol abuse.

National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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.

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, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

You must meet the qualification requirements for this position no later than the closing date of the vacancy announcement.

Education

None

Additional information

Eligibility to apply for other Federal positions: TSA is an Excepted Service agency exempt from most of Title 5 United States Code, including regulations which apply to displaced Federal employees (CTAP/ICTAP) of other agencies, and employment with TSA does not confer "Competitive Status" that generally results from selection and service in Competitive Service agencies. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has established an Interchange Agreement, which allows most permanent TSA employees to apply and be considered for vacancies in Competitive Service agencies. Information from OPM on this or other Interchange Agreements is available at: http://www.opm.gov .

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 and successfully pass a background investigation as a condition of placement into this position.

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.

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.

TSA employees who are absent for the purpose of performing military duty may apply for any vacancies announced in their absence.

It is the policy of the Government not to deny employment simply because an individual has been unemployed or has had financial difficulties that have arisen through no fault of the individual. Information about an individual's employment experience will be used only to determine the person's qualifications and to assess his or her relative level of knowledge, skills, and abilities. Although an individual's personal conduct may be relevant in any employment decision, including conduct during periods of unemployment or evidence of dishonesty in handling financial matters, financial difficulty that has arisen through no fault of the individual will generally not itself be the basis of an unfavorable suitability or fitness determination. For more information, click here .

Permanent Change of Station (PCS) expenses are not authorized.

Relocation expenses are not authorized.

More than one position may be filled from this announcement.

If you are entering TSA employment on an appointment without time limitations, you must serve a basic trial period unless you have already met the requirement.

TSA policy requires verification of Selective Service registration for male applicants born after 12/31/59. For more information click here .

View common definitions of terms found in this announcement.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

You will be evaluated based on a comparison of the position requirements against the quality and extent of the experience and/or related education as reflected in your resume and supporting documentation. You are encouraged to ensure work experiences clearly show possession of the competencies required for this position. We will compare your resume and supporting documentation to your responses on the assessment questionnaire. If, after reviewing your resume and any supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your category placement may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job.

Candidates will be rated and ranked using Category Grouping procedures. Under Category Grouping, candidates will be rated and ranked into one of three categories:

Best-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate high proficiency in all of the critical competencies, including all Selective Placement Factors (SPF) as determined by the job analysis.

Well-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrates acceptable proficiency in all of the critical competencies, including all SPFs as determined by the job analysis.

Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate basic proficiency in most of the critical competencies, including all SPFs as determined by the job analysis.

If you are best qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for consideration and may be called for an interview.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies that are relevant to the duties of this position and must be fully supported by information in your resume:

• Broad knowledge of the concepts, -principles, goals and objectives of quality of Work Life Wellness programs and Initiatives.
• Skill in advising or referring individuals who may be distraught and/or dealing with difficult work life issues.
• Knowledge of a wide range of qualitative analytical and evaluative methods to assess and advise leadership on program/project operation efficiency, effectiveness, and viability.
• Ability to analyze complex data and draft high quality memos, briefings, reports, and other technical documentation in order to communicate analyses to clients, subordinate units, and leadership.
• Knowledge of marketing and communication principles in order to effectively communicate Work Life Wellness programs at an agency level.
• Understanding of hardware and software terminology, tools, applications in order to understand how technology can be used to communicate program information, e.g., smartphone applications.

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Not Required

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

In addition to a resume and the assessment questions, you must submit copies of any of the following documents if you are applying based on current or former Federal Government Status, Veterans' Preference or eligible Veterans' Service (a veteran who was honorably discharged from the armed forces after completing at least three (3) years of continuous active duty service), or education or a combination of education and experience:

SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action - Current TSA employees are not required to submit an SF-50 to support eligibility for Status consideration.

If you are not a current TSA employee: you must submit your most recent Notification of Personnel Action SF-50 (or equivalent document) to support your eligibility for Status consideration.

NOTE: An award SF-50 (i.e. cash or time off award) does not indicate grade or level (i.e. pay band) or tenure to determine your eligibility for this position and will not be accepted.

DD-214 - If you are claiming Veterans' Preference or eligible Veterans' Service, provide a copy of your DD-214 (Member Copy 4), Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, or other appropriate documentation to prove your entitlement and to provide verification of an Honorable Discharge.

SF-15 and VA Letter - If you are claiming Veterans' Preference based upon a Compensable Disability, Widow or Spouse Entitlement, or as a Purple Heart recipient, you must submit your DD-214 or other proof of entitlement; an SF-15, and the required proof of disability, i.e., Department of Veterans Affairs letter dated 1991 or later.

If you do not submit required documentation described in this job opportunity announcement, your application will be deemed incomplete and you will be ineligible for further consideration for this vacancy.

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.