Telephone Operator

Summary The Telephone Operator works as part of the Benefits and Enrollment Section of the Business Office for the Iowa City VA Health Care System in Iowa City, IA. Responsibilities THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION Major duties and responsibilities include: Places and receives local, regular, and special long distance calls using government lines, commercial circuits, or other systems. Provides directory service assistance to callers by retrieving organizational information from computerized directory databases. Maintains records of all calls for computing charges; and provides primary or alternate routing service for high precedence calls. Prepares files for end of month reporting. Monitors vital circuits and emergency type calls such as those to security, the police, the fire department, and other departments; and monitors alarm systems and surrounding buildings and takes appropriate action upon receiving an alarm notification. Operates various paging systems (long range, in-house, overhead call). Makes routine and emergency broadcast announcements during environmental disasters or emergent medical situations. Issues and receives staff pagers in the absence of the assigned supervisor. Retrieves and updates relevant information in computerized databases using instructions and established guidelines pertaining to customer assistance, record keeping and call receiving, placing and monitoring. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 7:30am to 4:00pm or 8:00am to 4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) – See “Additional Information” below for details. Qualifications IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-4 LEVEL YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING: GENERAL EXPERIENCE: You must possess at least one year of general experience that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) needed to successfully perform the duties of the position and that is typically in or related to this Telephone Operator position to be filled. General experience includes progressively responsible clerical, office, or other work that indicates ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position to be filled. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE.) ~OR~ SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE: You must have successfully completed two years of education above the high school level. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college, or university. One year of full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university, or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial, or technical school. One full year of graduate education is considered to be 18 semester hours. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~OR~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: You must possess equivalent combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements at the GS-4 level. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE AND COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Information Management Technical Competence Telecommunications IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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. 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. Physical Requirements: The work requires minimal physical effort and is mainly performed in an office setting, there is slight physical effort required such as standing, walking, bending, sitting but efforts primarily consist of talking on the telephone and typing. The work is normally performed in an office setting. The work area typically is adequately lighted, heated and ventilated. The telephone operator room is a secure area and only authorized personnel are allowed to be in the work area. The incumbent observes established safety standards and practices as defined in current policy. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Managements website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education IMPORTANT: 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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov). Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicants 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.