The duties may include, but are not limited to:

• 
  
• Plans and schedules the work and personnel assignments on a long-
  term basis.  Short-term planning is necessary when unanticipated
  leave, deadlines, special requests or unusually heavy workloads
  occur in the receiving and processing of diagnostic
  submissions.
•  
  
• Makes changes in the organization of work or assignment of
  functions to personnel to improve work flow (meet time frames) and
  services rendered, promote job satisfaction, and/or increase
  productivity.
• 
  
• Reviews and acts on suggestions in establishing or revising
  reference manuals, policies, and procedures related to handling
  sample submissions.
• 
  
• Recommends and justifies policies or procedures, related to
  biologic and diagnostic sample processing, that may increase costs,
  limit services rendered, or affect work outside the work unit.
  
• Develops performance standards for immediate subordinates and
  periodically reviews work accomplishments.  Assigns and recommends
  changes in procedures, work assignments, and/or work schedules in an
  effort to improve performance efficiency and/or effectiveness or to
  meet program priorities.  Informs employees of changes in policies,
  practices and procedures; and provides instructions on new,
  difficult, and unusual work assignments.
• 
  
• Conducts performance evaluations, approves and schedules leave,
  initiates disciplinary action, and recommends promotions, awards and
  personnel selections.
•  
  
• Prepares and maintains reports, keeps employees informed of
  personnel management programs, establishes internal guidelines for
  approving, modifying, or rejecting actions of subordinate employees
  and prepares formal and follow-up actions on supervisory personnel
  functions.
• 
  
• Develops detailed budget, workforce and technology plans to
  maximize available resources.  Completes equipment inventory and
  reports as required.
• 
  
• Approves Individual Development Plans (IDPs) and monitors
  training programs to broaden employee skills and insure that all
  Sample Processing Section employees are appropriately cross trained
  such that each employee has backup.  Prepares training plans for
  assigned employees and recommends employees for formal training
  courses when indicated.
• 
  
• Coordinates daily work schedule.
• 
  
• Performs pre-screening and initial assessment designed to
  mitigate interruptions in operations as a result of contaminates,
  explosive, or incendiary devices received in order to maintain
  safety of personnel and facility.  Uses established standard
  operating procedures to identify suspicious materials received and
  initiate incident response procedures.
• 
  
• Inspects all submissions and the accompanying paperwork for
  agreement and accuracy in identification and labeling.  Identifies
  and corrects inaccuracies.
• 
  
• Schedule samples for testing according to established
  procedures.
•  
  
• Identifies type of sample received, determines testing required
  and sample priority then assigns to proper laboratory section for
  testing.  If multiple tests are needed, incumbent prioritizes
  testing sequence and divides samples appropriately.
• 
  
• Determines billing status of submission and assigns the
  appropriate billing code.
• 
  
• Delivers samples to the appropriate testing, storage, or
  shipment location as necessary.
• 
  
• Enters and maintains submission information into various
  databases.

To qualify, you MUST meet all qualification requirements by the

closing date of the announcement.



SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-9 GRADE LEVEL:

Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent

in level of difficulty and responsibility to the next lower level in

the Federal service.  This experience is typically in, or related

to, the work of the position being filled.



THERE IS NO EDUCATION SUBSTITUTION FOR THE GS-9 GRADE LEVEL.

Special Conditions:

• 
  
• As a condition of employment, a background investigation may be
  required for this position.
• 
  
• If you are appointed to a supervisory or managerial position,
  you may be required to complete a one year supervisory/managerial
  probationary period.
• 
  
• Subject to satisfactory completion of one year probationary
  period.
•  
  
• Must posses a valid driver's license.
•  
  
• Requires manual dexterity and coordination to work with fragile
  samples, forcepts, scalpels, knives and pipettes.
•  
  
• Must have the ability to lift objects up to 50 lbs.
•  
  
• Work environment involves high risks with regular recurring
  exposure to potentially dangerous substances.
•  
  
• May be required to wear PPE such as laboratory coat, masks or
  respirators, eye protection, and gloves.
•  
  
• We understand that accepting a position with Veterinary Services
  may require the need for spousal career placement assistance.  To
  help you and your family make a successful career transition,
  Veterinary Services is dedicated to providing information on career
  placement assistance.  Please visit the following web links for more
  information:
  http://www.job-hunt.org/jobs/states.shtml
  http://www.job-hunt.org/state_unemployment_offices.shtml
• 
  
• This position is subject to unscheduled overnight details of
  undetermined lengths in the event of animal health emergencies or
  other conditions requiring immediate response, as required by the
  Agency.  (Extensive periods of time may be designated for overnight
  details.)
• 
  

An automated scoring system will be used to initially rank

applicants based on their answers to the vacancy specific

questions.  Your self-determined rating, narrative responses, and

resume will then be reviewed.  The final rating will be determined

based on all the information provided in the application package.

Please ensure your resume and narrative responses provide enough

detail to support your answers to the vacancy specific questions.

BENEFITS:
Eligibility for employee benefits depends on your type of appointment and your tour of duty (work schedule). Generally, you must be hired on a permanent basis and have a regular full or part- time work schedule. Some of the benefits for which you may be entitled are: Federal Employees Retirement System Thrift Savings Plan Federal Employees Health Benefits Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Flexible Spending Accounts Federal Long Term Care Insurance For more information on these and many other benefits, go to: Federal Employee Benefits
OTHER INFORMATION:	Top
For information regarding CTAP eligibility for applicants who are displaced Federal employees click on the link below: Career Transition Assistance Programs More than one selection may be made if another vacancy occurs within 90 days of the issuance of the certification of eligibles. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc) should contact: USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720- 2600 (voice and TDD).                                 HOW TO APPLY: A complete on-line application will require the submission of the following: Resume and Core Federal Questions (See How You Will Be Evaluated found under the Qualifications and Evaluations tab for more information) Responses to the vacancy specific questions and/or Knowledge, Skill, and Ability (KSA) questions Supporting Documentation which may be required (See links under Required Documents for more information) College Transcripts or List of Coursework - MUST be in English (Key Requirement and/or Education Substitution) DD-214 and other Veterans' documents (Veterans Preference) ICTAP/CTAP eligibility documentation (Displace Employees) For instructions on using the on-line system click: APPLYING ON-LINE For information on how to submit your supporting documentation through our automated hiring system and/or print additional fax cover sheets click: SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED DOCUMENTS: Top  Click on the following links to see if the supporting documentation is applicable to you: Do I need to submit college transcripts? I attended school at a foreign university. Do I need to submit any additional documents? I am applying for Veterans' Preference. What documents do I need to submit? I am a displaced or surplus Federal employee. What documents do I need to submit? Critical Submission Requirements and Reminders Help in applying online is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Central Time at the number listed in the Contact information section. All application materials and supplemental documentation will be accepted until midnight Eastern Time on the closing date. Application and supporting documentation will not be accepted via e-mail. Fax only documents which are clear and legible.  Illegible faxed documents cannot be used for qualification or verification purposes. Due to the high volume of applicants, we are unable to confirm receipt of faxed supporting documentation. You should retain confirmation of a successful fax transmission including the number of pages successfully transmitted as proof of submission. If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the human resources office.  If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must fax both the old document and the new document. If you are using the system generated fax cover sheet, please fax to the number listed on the fax cover sheet. Please be sure to click both [Finished] buttons when completing an on-line application. Our online application system is 100% compatible with Internet Explorer (IE) versions 5.0 and above. Applicants who cannot apply on-line must request a hard copy application packet from the Agency Contact listed in the vacancy announcement. Resumes and/or supporting documentation alone will not be considered without the inclusion of a hard copy application packet.