Supervisory HR Specialist (ER/LR) - Reasonable Accommodation & Worklife Benefits (GS-13)

Summary

The purpose of this position is to supervise Worklife/Benefit (WLB) and Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Shared Service Unit (SSU) that provides services, support, and advice in WLB and RA in support of all VHA medical centers within HSA 2.2 & HSA-2.4. *This is a Detail/Temporary Promotion Not to Exceed 120 days. Opportunity may be extended or made permanent without further competition.*

Duties

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: HR Specialist Total Rewards This is a Detail/Temporary Promotion Not to Exceed 120 days. Opportunity may be extended or made permanent without further competition Major duties include but are not limited to the following: Serves as the RA subject matter expert (SME) to advise employees, applicants for employment, supervisors, and members of management regarding laws, regulations and procedures for RA. Incumbent promotes organizational efforts to support a balance between work and personal life that fosters employee engagement and productivity by providing federal leave program and Worklife/Employee benefits services to VHA employees and supervisory/managerial staff. Incumbent also supports the provision of reasonable accommodations allowing VHA staff to perform the essential functions of their position. Incumbent is responsible for supervising and administering a VISN's Federal Worklife/Employee Benefits Program, including Federal Leave Programs, employee group life insurance, health benefits, Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and other Worklife programs.; Serves as VISN Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator. Researches best practices in RA in federal government and stays abreast of changes, modifications, and revisions to laws, regulations, and policies pertaining to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, and the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008. Coordinates with other areas of Human Resources, including Recruitment & Placement, Employee/Labor Relations, Retirement Shared Service Office (RSSO) and Workers Compensation to ensure that the employee is advised of their rights under benefit programs which may be appropriate to them. Assists managers in determining the essential duties of a position and identifies barriers and possible modifications that would allow people with disabilities to perform said duties. Provides managers with information on RA and needs assessments for applicants and employees with disabilities. Ensures staff are creating, maintaining, and tracking a VA-approved system of records separate from the employee's personnel file for all requests for accommodation, including medical or other documentation provided. This position is responsible for supervising and administering a VISN's Federal Worklife/Employee Benefits Program, including Federal Leave Programs, employee group life insurance, health benefits, Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and other Worklife programs. Responsibilities include the following: The mastery and implementation of VA/VHA/VISN policies and regulations associated with these programs To brief management and all VISN leadership on the status of these programs To train subordinate staff and VISN staff and management regarding the latest information Preparing communications regarding current and future requirements and information and serving as the VISN's policy and regulatory subject matter expert (SME) for these programs. Plans and conducts studies and analyses of the work-life needs throughout the Network. Analyzes the information/data from reports and/or study findings, conducting research, and prepares detailed responses to VISN Chief HR Officer. As the VISN's SME, resolves the more complex and unusual problems and provides technical advice to specialists. Identifies the need for special projects to evaluate the effectiveness of programs and initiates milestones and goals. Performs a full range of supervisory duties relating to supervision of WLB and RA Shared Services staff. Plans and directs work, assigns tasks, evaluates work performed, advises employees, selects applicants to fill vacant positions, handles complaints, grievances, and disciplinary problems regarding subordinate staff. Ensures adequate training of subordinates. Provides advice and direction regarding production and quality requirements. Evaluates unit productivity, quality, regulatory compliance, and technical competence. Makes changes in work assignments and workflow; balances workload among positions to increase effectiveness of operations. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 08:00am - 4:30pm EST (subject to change based on agency needs) Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Supervisory HR Specialist (ER/LR) - Reasonable Accommodation & Worklife Benefits/PD99934S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/26/2026. This is a Detail/Temporary Promotion Not to Exceed 120 days. Opportunity may be extended or made permanent without further competition. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. The BASIC REQUIREMENT for the HR Specialist GS-0201 series is presumed met if found qualified at the GS-0201-7 level and above. To qualify for this position at the GS-13 level, you must meet one of the following listed Criteria: Criteria 1- Graduate Degree and Specialized Experience: Successful completion of a graduate level degree or higher and three years of progressive specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level. Such experience may be gained in administrative, professional, technical or other responsible work positions in the public (i.e., Government or military) or private sector. Qualifying specialized experience includes: advising employees, applicants for employment, supervisors, and members of management regarding laws, regulations and procedures for Reasonable Accommodations (RA) and Work Life Benefits (WLB); training subordinate staff and management regarding the latest information; ensuring that accommodations which are granted are provided to the requestor within established timelines; assisting managers in determining the essential duties of a position and identifies barriers and possible modifications that would allow people with disabilities to perform said duties; providing managers with information on RA and needs assessments for applicants and employees with disabilities, and ensuring all employees are given proper information regarding all WLB programs. ~OR~ Criteria 2- Specialized Experience: You must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in federal service that demonstrates HR management knowledge, concepts and principles and the performance of work in one or more of the HR specialty areas. Such experience may be gained in administrative, professional, technical or other responsible work positions in the public (i.e., Government or military) or private sector. Qualifying specialized experience includes: Lead and administering a VISN's Federal Worklife/Employee Benefits Program, including Federal Leave Programs, employee group life insurance, health benefits; Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and other Worklife programs; serves as VISN Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator; furthers the goals of equal employment opportunity (EEO) by adhering to nondiscriminatory, employment practices related to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or handicap; resolve highly complex programmatic issues in the network. Many of these problems involve detailed analysis of applicable laws, regulations, and policies to ensure compliance, and require substantial coordination and collaboration with other HR functions, high level managers, other networks, VHA, and VACO. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial 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.

Education

Qualifying education for the GS-0201 series includes courses and programs in HR, HR development, HR management, business, business management/administration, industrial relations, labor relations, industrial psychology, organizational psychology, organizational development, management, organizational behavior, pre-law/law, legal studies, health care management/administration, public administration, public policy, human services, leadership and/or humanities. A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

How you will be evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Accountability Customer Service Decisiveness Flexibility Interpersonal Skills Problem Solving Resilience Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. 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; religions; 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online questionnaire and submission of the required documentation specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. To preview the application questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13094074. The application process is as follows: To begin, click Apply Online to create a USA JOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date, 10/26/2026. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside at least 3 hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. NOTE: Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. 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: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to. 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. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume: Prioritize most relevant and recent experience Use concise, results focused language Align language from the job announcement Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies Remove outdated or unrelated experience Use the USAJOBS resume builder Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/page-limit

Other information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.