Duties

Summary

This position is located in the Office of Policy and Program Development (OPPD), Labeling and Program Delivery Staff (LPDS).

The incumbent is responsible for performing studies, analyses, and other activities related to a program that focuses on mission-related activities and issues. In this capacity, the incumbent personally performs implementing, managing, and evaluating all aspects of the program. Serves as staff advisor to senior staff and the Director and resource in providing guidance.
Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

• Provides technical advice to Agency and program officials in the interpretation of meat, poultry, and egg product policies, standards, regulations, and procedures as they relate to the Staff.
• Prepares regulatory documents, such as advance notices of proposed rulemaking, proposed rules, final rules, notices, directives, and other issuances.
• Provides liaison with other FSIS programs and USDA divisions, agencies, and professionals by reviewing, editing, and assisting in writing consumer-oriented nutrition labeling materials, such as leaflets, bulletins, backgrounders, news items, etc.
• Provides guidance and advice on new/modified nutrition labeling formats.
• Provides guidance to Agency staff, other Government agencies, industry, consumer and trade groups, and congressional staffers on labeling policy in the areas of nutrition, public health, and consumers.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position up to 10% of the time.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
12

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
• Successful completion of one year probationary period, unless previously served.
• Direct Deposit - Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• The full performance level of this position is GS-12, however it may be filled at developmental grades GS- 09 or GS-11 as a multi-grade career ladder.
• Must be a Current U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service Employee, and must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements for consideration.
• Must reside within the Local Commuting Area of Washington, DC.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement, including time-in-grade restrictions, basic requirements, and minimum qualifications, as defined below.

TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-07 is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-09 level. One year at the GS-09 is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-11 level. One year at the GS-11 is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-12 level. (Must submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade.)

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:
General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences Series, 0401

Degree: Bachelor's or higher in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to this position; OR

Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to this position, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Consumer Safety Series, 0696

• A. Bachelor's or graduate/higher-level degree in quality assurance or a related degree that included at least 30 semester hours in one or a combination of the following: consumer laws, biological sciences, food science, chemistry, pharmacy, physical sciences, food technology, nutrition, medical science, engineering, epidemiology, veterinary medical science, legal investigations, law enforcement, or related scientific fields that provided knowledge directly related to consumer safety officer work. The 30 semester hours may include up to 8 semester hours in statistics, or course work that included the principles, theory, or practical application of computers or computer programming; OR
• B. Combination of education and experience--Courses consisting of at least 30 semester hours in the fields of study described in Paragraph A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Experience: Qualifying experience involves enforcing laws and regulations to protect consumers from foods, drugs, cosmetics, fabrics, toys, equipment, and household products that are defective, dangerous, impure, unwholesome, ineffective, or improperly or deceptively labeled or packaged.

Food Technology Series, 1382

• A. Bachelor's or graduate/higher-level degree in food technology, or dairy technology, microbiology, biology, chemistry, physics, or a related discipline or field of biological or physical science. The course work must have been comprised of at least 30 semester hours in the basic biological and physical sciences, and included at least 20 semester hours in food technology and closely related subjects, or 20 semester hours in subjects that can be applied directly to food technology; OR
• B. Combination of education and experience--Courses equivalent to a major, including the course work specified in Paragraph A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level(s) to which you are applying:

GS-09
Specialized Experience: You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service that includes:

• Providing technical advice based on the interpretation of meat, poultry, and egg product policies, standards, and regulations;
• Evaluating and assessing potential health and nutrition issues, and identifying the need for a response; and
• Inspection verification of food labels and other consumer protection compliance with applicable laws and regulations. OR

Education: You must possess a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be determined from the school, 36 semester hours should be considered as equivalent to 2 years of full-time study. OR
Combination of experience and education: You must have an appropriate combination of experience and successfully completed graduate-level education. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. Only graduate education in excess of 1 year (18 semester hours) may be used to qualify.

GS-11
Specialized Experience: You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service that includes:

• Working on a team to research, analyze, and/or evaluate work related to food processing (food safety or other consumer protections) systems to obtain information, verify facts, and provide recommendations;
• Assisting in analysis to determine the effectiveness of food safety systems or other consumer protection requirements and practices by applying Federal or state regulations and laws to determine compliance; and
• Inspection verification of food labels and other consumer protection compliance with applicable laws and regulations, as well as providing liaison duties to external programs by assisting in writing consumer-oriented food safety information. OR

Education: You must possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be determined from the school, 54 semester hours will be considered as equivalent to 3 years of full-time study. OR
Combination of experience and education: You must have an appropriate combination of experience and successfully completed graduate-level education. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. Only graduate education in excess of 2 years (36 semester hours) may be used to qualify.

GS-12
Specialized Experience: You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service that includes:

• Contributing to performing research, analysis, or evaluative work related to food processing (food safety or other consumer protections) systems to obtain information and verify facts resulting in a course of action; Evaluating the effectiveness of food safety systems or other consumer protection requirements and practices by applying Federal or state regulations and laws to determine compliance; Inspection verification of food labels and other consumer protection compliance with applicable laws and regulations; and Advising regarding policy development for the purpose of making and communicating judgements on the regulatory requirements applied to food processing, animal production, or other consumer protections.

Education

The education must have been obtained at a college, university, or an accrediting body recognized by the Secretary, U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained.

Additional information

• This position is open to Current U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Employees in the Competitive Service with Career or Career Conditional Tenure. Your SF-50 must reflect current employment with FSIS and career/career-conditional tenure (Tenure field is 1 or 2); AND status in the competitive service (Position Occupied field is 1).
• Applicants must reside within the Local Commuting Area of Washington, DC.
• Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100.
• If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed.
• Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
• Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc) should contact: USDAs TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).
• 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. To see more information visit CHCO Council.

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 your qualifications for this position as evidenced by the experience, education, and training you described in your application package, as well as the responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine the degree to which you possess the knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies listed below:

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Integrity/Honesty

Your application, including the online Assessment Questionnaire, will be reviewed to determine if you meet (a) minimum qualification requirements and (b) the resume supports the answers provided to the job-specific questions. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position. Applicants who meet the minimum qualification requirements and are determined to be among the best qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. Noncompetitive candidates and applicants under some special hiring authorities need only meet minimum qualifications to be referred.

Note: If after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.

To preview the application questionnaire, please visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11207079

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Not Required

Drug test required
No

Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness , Credentialing

Required Documents

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.

• Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address within the Local Commuting Area of Washington, DC, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications.
  • 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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
  • IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).
• You must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, official transcripts will be required prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education, visit the NACES website. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
• Current Federal employees:
  • Most recent non-award Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) showing you are in the competitive service, highest grade held (or promotion potential) on a permanent basis, position title, series and grade AND
  • Most recent performance appraisal (dated within 18 months) showing the official rating of record, signed by a supervisor, or statement why the performance appraisal is unavailable. A performance plan is not an acceptable substitute.
• Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.

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.