Employee Relations Specialist - Office of Human Resources Management

About the role

As an Employee Relations Specialist, you will provide advice and guidance to management and employees regarding the full range of employee relations issues.

Duties

• Provide advice and guidance regarding the full range of employee and labor relations issues pertaining to performance and conduct including: discipline, adverse actions, leave administration, performance management, awards management/recognition, medical and reasonable accommodation issues.
• Perform analytical research, fact-finding, interviewing, recommending solutions and innovative changes in procedures, and resolve complex, controversial and sensitive employee relations issues with a high degree of independence.
• Review and recommend appropriate action on complex and controversial employee relations issues.
• Research past agency practices for similar actions and use this knowledge to frame disciplinary charges that will withstand third-party scrutiny.
• Determine methods for fact-finding; interpret a variety of guidelines; resolve conflicts in the facts or the guidelines as necessary; and determine the best method to present findings and recommendations to management.
• Advise managers and supervisors on the appropriateness of a disciplinary-based action given the severity of the action, the type of offense in question, past practices of the organization, the potential implications/ramifications of the proposed action, unforeseen issues (e.g., medical issues), mitigating factors pertinent to the pending disciplinary case and alternative options (such as proposing alternative dispute resolution).
• Present findings and recommendations to management when providing advice and assistance.
• Provide advice and guidance to managers/supervisors related to all phases of the performance management process.
• Provide technical advice to supervisors regarding the intent and procedures of the awards and recognition program.
• May participate as an agency representative during alternative dispute resolution (ADR) proceedings.
• Recommend, prepare and conduct supervisory training and training materials to address employee relations issues (e.g., documenting conduct issues, framing charges, deciphering between formal/informal conduct-related matters, leave abuse, and similar matters).
• Address complex issues and questions pertaining to hours of work, and the leave administration program, including flexible and compressed work schedules, telework, hours of work/provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, leave without pay (LWOP), military leave, annual leave, sick leave, court leave, administrative leave, the leave transfer program, Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)/Family Friendly Leave Act (FFL), etc.
• Advise managers/supervisors on procedures for requesting medical documentation to determine appropriate work arrangements or reasonable accommodations.
• May be required to engage in or assist the Reasonable Accommodations Coordinator in the interactive reasonable accommodation process.
• Advise managers/supervisors on appropriate steps when an employee’s performance diminishes or falls below the fully successful level.
• Work with the manager/supervisor to effectively place the employee on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP).
• Review the employee's performance plan, assisting the manager/supervisor in developing the components of a PIP to ensure the manager/supervisor is performing his/her part during the process with the employee, and advise the manager/supervisor as to the appropriate options if the employee fails to improve performance under the PIP.

Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship or National (Residents of American Samoa and Swains Island).
• Meet all eligibility criteria within 30 days of the closing date.
• Meet time-in-grade within 30 days of the closing date, if applicable.
• Register with Selective Service if you are a male born after 12/31/1959.
• If selected, you must meet the following conditions:
  • Current or Former Political Appointees: 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 or NonCareer SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.
  • Serve a one-year probationary period, if required.
  • Undergo and pass a background investigation (Tier 2 investigation level).
  • Have your identity and work status eligibility verified if you are not a GSA employee. We will use the Department of Homeland Security’s e-Verify system for this. Any discrepancies must be resolved as a condition of continued employment.

Qualifications

To evaluate your qualifications, your resume must clearly demonstrate how you meet the specialized experience described below. Your resume must not exceed two pages. To ensure your qualifications can be fully evaluated, we recommend including the following information:

• Name, address, telephone number, email address;
• Job Title (if Federal Service, provide series and grade; if not in GS plan, provide GS equivalent grade);
• Relevant work experience—should include employer name, job title, start and end dates (month/year), the number of hours worked per week and descriptions that explain how you meet the required qualifications in the job announcement.
• Education, certifications or licensures—If the job announcement requires any education, certifications or licensures, make sure to include the required information and any required documents like transcripts.

Your resume should contain enough information to make a valid determination that you fully meet experience requirements for each grade level you are applying to. If you do not provide enough information for us to determine your qualifications, you may be rated ineligible.

If you have volunteered your service through a National Service program (e.g., Peace Corps, Americorps), we encourage you to apply and include this experience on your resume.

The GS-12 salary range starts at $90,968 per year. If you are a new federal employee, your starting salary will likely be set at Step 1 of the grade for which you are selected.

To qualify, you must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level or higher in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience serving as an independent Employee Relations (ER) Specialist, providing authoritative advice, technical services, and regulatory guidance to senior managers and employees on highly sensitive ER matters. Experience includes:

• Interpreting and applying statutes, regulations and an organization's policies to manage discipline, adverse and performance-based actions;
• Managing medical and reasonable accommodation issues to ensure compliance; and
• Conducting workplace investigations to recommend legally defensible, policy-compliant resolutions.

Benefits

• Health insurance (choose from a wide range of plans)
• Life insurance coverage with several options
• Sick leave and vacation time, including 11 paid holidays per year
• Thrift Savings Plan (similar to a 401(k) plan)
• Transit and child care subsidies
• Flexible spending accounts
• Long-term care insurance
• Training and development

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.