Location: Lyons,NJ, USA
Summary The position is located in the Mail & Reproduction Unit, Storage and Distribution Division, Logistics Services, on both East Orange and Lyons Campuses. Mail Service is provided to the VA New Jersey Health Care System (VANJHCS), located at the 2 main campuses, East Orange and Lyons. This position is primarily located at the Lyons campus but may be required to provide coverage at the East Orange Campus as needed. Responsibilities The principal duties and responsibilities of the position have seven main components: Internal Distribution; Mail Analysis; Processing Outgoing Mail; Controlled Mail; Facility Education; Reproduction and Publications. PROCESSING INCOMING MATERIALS Receives all facility mail from external sources; e.g., US Postal Service (USPS); Unites States Parcel Service (UPS); Federal Express (FedEx); etc. Receiving and handling of perishable or refrigerated materials, urgent and sensitive documents (e.g., Express Mail, Priority Mail, etc.) varies among the different carriers but generally requires employee signature acknowledging receipt. Signed receipt for these materials places personal responsibility upon the incumbent for the control, safety, timely and accurate delivery of mail piece(s) within the facility. Incumbent exercises personal judgment for refusing delivery of materials inaccurately addresses, for materials which would place a financial liability upon the government simply by acceptance of delivery, or, for legal documents which must be personally delivered to the addressee. Receives and separate facility internal mail for redistribution within the facility from mail to be delivered externally. MAIL ANALYSIS / ROUTING / INTERNAL DISTRIBUTION Sorts a large amount of diverse and sometimes complex mail for internal distribution by mail routing symbol and/or mail delivery point (MDP). This is accomplished in accordance with local VANJHCS Mail Management Policy which lists 157 different Mail Routing Symbols across the 2 main VANJHCS campuses (72 on the Lyons Campus and 85 on the East Orange Campus). This is made difficult due to similar or otherwise closely related functions of some delivery points and by mail being addressed to a broad heading making the correct delivery point hard to distinguish. Mail not addressed to a specific office or MDP is opened and analyzed to determine the intended recipient. Mail pieces are assessed to determine the necessity for control and/or date stamping. Mail addressed to former employees and patients must be assessed for proper action. Reviews official publications to determine proper routing to affected, implementing and/or operational facility elements. PROCESS OUTGOING MAIL Assesses all outgoing mail for proper and complete addressing, proper labeling and packaging in adherence to postal and related administrative regulations pertaining to format, addressing methods and other features. Incumbent will on own authority refuse mail pieces where packaging, labeling, endorsements or addressing is so insufficient as to hinder or delay delivery. Prepares outgoing materials for dispatch by completing a number of tasks such as date stamping, verifying signatures, facing materials, running mail through sealing, metering, or canceling machines, bundling and bagging mail according to U.S. Postal Service regulations, wrapping bulk mail, and preparing labels and envelopes. After outgoing communications are checked, dated, and separated, they are sorted for local and out-of-city delivery. In addition to this initial sorting, it is necessary to segregate material which requires special handling, such as air mail, special delivery, registered, etc. Assesses all outgoing mail and determines the application of special services or use of an alternate carrier, e.g., FedEx, UPS, Roadway, DHL, etc. Selection of class of service and carrier will normally be made independently by the incumbent. Requests for expedited or special mail services, e.g., registered return receipt, Express Mail, Priority Mail, insurance, etc., shall be assessed and approved or denied by the incumbent based upon professional knowledge and experience, published guidelines, availability of funds and personal knowledge of the immediate situation. Incumbent is expected to exercise sound personal judgment in the approval and disapproval of these services. Such decisions are normally made independently and are subject to review only upon appeal. Letter and flat mail are grouped, fanned and faced up for processing through mail processing and metering equipment. Incumbent sets the meter functionality to result in proper postage payment. CONTROLLED MAIL Certain mail, because of pecuniary liabilities, sensitivity or other reasons must be controlled . Such mail is analogous to registered mail service through USPS. Incumbent logs mail piece identification and date mail piece was received or identified through mail analysis. Signs receipt for mail communications when required by carrier delivering to the facility (i.e. registered mail, return receipt request mail, security classified and other specified communications). Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00AM - 4:30PM Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Mail Clerk/PD07284A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized 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 To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/23/2024. 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-04 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-03. 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. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: General Experience: You must have one year of general experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-03 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of general experience would typically include, but are not limited to: experience in 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 such as skills in using office automation equipment and software to enter, gather, and organize information; and the ability to communicate and interact in an effective manner both orally and in writing with people of varied educational, ethnic, and social backgrounds. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have two (2) years of successfully completed education above the high school level in any field for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. (Transcripts Required). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of general experience and education beyond high school, to meet the total experience requirements of the position. (Transcripts Required) You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Technical Competence Technology Application Technology Awareness 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. Note: 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. Physical Requirements: The position places several physical demands upon the incumbent. Delivery routes require extended walking and traveling both inside and outside between buildings in all types of weather. The incumbent is required to move wheeled postal hampers weighing up to 80 lbs. and individually lift and place parcels weighing up to 50 lbs. and, with assistance, parcels weighing up to 70 lbs. The Mail Room is in a warehouse work environment with loading docks and other areas exposed to the weather. Mail distribution/messenger duties are performed within the facility's buildings and between them and may expose incumbent to inclement weather conditions. Mail processing and reproduction work is generally performed in lighted, heated and air conditioned facilities. During equipment operation, the incumbent is subject to machine noise, paper dust, lubricants and fumes for cleaning agents. Safety precautions must be observed to prevent injury during the operations of the equipment and when lifting packages and boxes. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education 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: 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: 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 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.