Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handboook

Department of the Interior

Office of Human Capital

Strategic Talent Programs Division

Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy

Personnel Handbook

NOVEMBER 2020

This Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook supersedes the

DOI Merit Promotion Plan Personnel Handbook dated July 9, 2012.

FOREWORD

This Handbook establishes the Department-wide policies and procedures for merit staffing

according to the Department of the Interior (DOI) Merit Promotion Plan (MPP) Policy for the

General Schedule and Federal Wage System. It provides policy and operational instructions

relative to merit staffing and merit promotion program areas. This system is used to consider

current and former federal employees for positions based on personal merit. Positions are

usually filled through competition with applicants being evaluated and ranked for positions

based on their experience, education, skills, and performance record.

Bureaus may use this Handbook to implement the Departments MPP. Bureaus may want to

set specific internal operational procedures where flexibilities and discretionary actions are

allowed. Bureaus will be required to meet their statutory obligations where there is an

exclusive representative for bargaining unit employees. This MPP must be used in

conjunction with the current Departmental Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP). Where

the Departmental MPP or bureau specific operational procedures conflict with a negotiated

agreement covering bargaining units, the agreement will prevail. The Human Resources

Division (HRD) must ensure that all bargaining obligations are fulfilled prior to

implementation for covered bargaining units.

It is the policy of DOI to provide a fair and systematic approach for the identification,

evaluation, and competitive selection of highly qualified employees based on merit after fair

and open competition. Management has the right to fill or not fill a specific vacancy and to

determine the most appropriate method for filling a vacancy. The MPP does not guarantee

promotion. Management has the right to make selections from properly ranked and certified

candidates or may choose to make selections from a variety of other appropriate sources.

Identification, qualification, evaluation, and selection will be made on the basis of merit

principles, without regard to political, religious or labor organization affiliation or non-

affiliation, marital status, race, color, sex, national origin, non-disqualifying physical or

mental handicap, sexual orientation, or age and shall be based solely on job-related criteria

in accordance with legitimate position requirements.

Questions regarding the contents of this MPP Personnel Handbook may be directed to the

Departmental Office of Human Capital (OHC) at

[email protected], or to the respective Servicing Human

Resources Office (SHRO).

A copy of this Handbook will be available on the Department’s Electronic Library of the Interior

Policies (ELIPS): https://elips.doi.gov/ELIPS/Welcome.aspx

Authorities

The legal and regulatory basis for agency merit promotion plans (MPP) are contained in 5 CFR

335.103. This handbook meets the requirements for a MPP and establishes a systematic means of

selection based on merit in accordance with Title 5, United States Code (U.S.C), Section 2301,

Merit Systems Principles; Section 2302, Prohibited Personnel Practices; chapter 23 Merit System

Principles; and Title 5 CFR 335, Promotion and Internal Placement, which ensure equitable

treatment for accretion-of-duties situations.

Applicability

This document applies to all DOI positions subject to 5 U.S.C. Chapter 51 (General Schedule

positions), and Chapter 53 (Federal Wage System positions). This policy Handbook governs

merit promotion staffing programs and actions throughout the Department of the Interior

(DOI). The information provided in this Handbook is designed to provide operational policy

guidance for managing the promotion and internal placement, or merit staffing, program for

Civil Service (CS) employees at DOI within the General Schedule (GS)-15 level and below

and Federal Wages System (FWS).

Provisions of this document apply to DOI positions in other pay systems unless specifically

exempted by special instructions and authority governing the specific pay system involved.

DOI adheres to the policies and procedures regarding filling competitive positions contained

in 5 CFR 335.103 as well as the policies and procedures outlined in 5 CFR 330, Subparts F

and G, in regard to Career Transition Assistance Plans (CTAP) and Interagency Career

Transition Assistance Plans (ICTAP). The MPP provides an open, systematic, and bias-free

placement system that ensures positions are filled with the best qualified individuals

available. Bureau and Office management personnel, in consultation with human resources,

determines when the use of merit staffing is appropriate for filling vacant positions.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 MERIT PROMOTION 1

1.1 Responsibilities for Merit Promotion Plan Execution 1

1.2 Labor-Management Considerations 2

1.3 General Merit Promotion Guidelines 2

1.4 Application of Competitive Procedures 2

1.5 Application of Non-Competitive Procedures 3

1.6 Career Transition Plan (CTAP) and Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) 4

1.7 Time-limited Promotions 5

1.8 Permanent Positions 6

1.9 Details 6

1.10 Appointment Types (Status) 6

2 JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS (JOA) 7

2.1 USA STAFFING 7

2.2 Area of Consideration (AOC) 7

2.3 JOA Open Periods 8

2.4 Open Continuous JOA 9

2.5 JOA Requirements 9

2.6 JOA Re-advertisements 10

2.7 JOA Administrative Errors 10

3 APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY & QUALIFICATIONS 11

3.1 Veterans’ Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA) 12

3.2 Non-Competitive Applicants 12

3.3 Schedule ‘A’ Applicants 13

3.4 30% or more Disabled Veterans 13

3.5 Military Spouse Applicants 14

3.6 Excepted Service Applicants Eligible for Competitive Service Appointments 14

3.7 Veterans Recruitment Appointment (VRA) 14

4 Rating, Ranking, and Referral 15

4.1 Rating and Ranking Evaluation Panels 15

4.2 Referral Lists (Certificate of Eligibles) 16

4.3 Late Application Procedures 16

4.4 Reconsideration of Rating 16

4.5 Priority Consideration due to Merit Promotion Violation 17

4.6 Administrative Error Resulting in Non-Referral 17

4.7 Referral Lists Suspense Date 18

5 Interviews 18

5.1 Payment of Interview Travel Expenses 19

6 Selections 19

6.1 Number of Selections 19

6.2 Returning Referral Lists 19

6.3 Non-Selections 19

7 EMPLOYMENT OFFERS 20

8 RELEASE OF EMPLOYEES 20

9 AUDITING CERTIFICATES 21

10 ACCRETION OF DUTIES 21

11 DUE WEIGHT 23

11.1 Due Weight – Used Certificates 23

11.2 Due Weight – Required JOA Language 23

11.3 Due Weight – Required Assessment Question 24

12 COMPLAINTS AND RELEASE OF INFORMATION 24

APPENDIX A: Definitions 26

APPENDIX B: The Competitive Process Overview Chart 32

APPENDIX C: OPM CTAP and ICTAP JOA Language 34

APPENDIX D: Accretion of Duties Eligibility Checklist 35

APPENDIX E: Supervisory Certification—Due Weight for Performance Appraisals & Awards 36

APPENDIX F: Due Weight Recordkeeping 37

APPENDIX G: Guidance on Devising Crediting Plans 38

APPENDIX H: FAQ, General Schedule/Promotions/WIGI/QSI 40

APPENDIX I: Federal Wage Pay System (FWS) 43

REFERENCES 44

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MERIT PROMOTION

1.1

RESPONSIBILITIES FOR MERIT PROMOTION PLAN EXECUTION

The efficacy of the hiring process is a shared responsibility among human resource

professionals, selecting officials/hiring managers, and personnel security professionals. Each

stakeholder is responsible for accomplishing their tasks timely, accurately, and collaboratively.

Hiring Managers/Selecting Officials are responsible for ensuring requests (SF-52) in USA

Staffing (USAS) system for hiring actions are initiated, approved and consistent with DOI’s

T2H policy; actively engage and collaborate closely with HR personnel through the whole hiring

process – especially during classification, job analysis, assessment (as SMEs), and selection

phases; establishing diversity goals and objectives and monitoring achievement of those

objectives; giving full and fair consideration to the qualifications of each candidate referred for a

vacancy; and ensuring that selections are based on merit without regard to race, color, religion,

national origin, physical or mental disability, sex (including gender identity and pregnancy), age,

sexual orientation, genetic information, reprisal for engaging in the EEO complaint process or

opposing protected activity, parental status, marital status, political affiliation, or other non-merit

factors. Hiring Managers/Selecting Officials are responsible for the timely selection and

returning of certificates of eligibles as well as ensuring accurate selection/non-selection notes

and applicant record of contact documentation.

Human Resource Professionals/Servicing Human Resource Offices are responsible for

administering this policy, managing the overall hiring process and actively engaging hiring

managers/officials throughout the hiring process by providing technical guidance and/or training

to selecting officials and employees on the use of merit staffing automated processes. HR offices

are responsible for ensuring data entered into the talent acquisition system is accurate, valid and

meets the minimum standards established herein. HR professionals/SHROs should also utilize

time to hire (T2H) data to advise hiring managers on approaches to efficiently and effectively

fill positions, per Personnel Bulletin (PB) 20-09, dated July 23, 2020. The selecting official in

conjunction with the servicing HR Office should determine which announcement mechanisms

will ensure the availability of a sufficient pool of highly qualified candidates. This may include

running concurrent Delegated Examining (DE) and Merit JOAs.

Employees are responsible for complying with merit staffing policies and procedures;

submitting all required application materials and supporting documentation within specified time

limits in accordance with Job Opportunity Announcements (JOA) and fulfilling the conditions

for career ladder promotions; and assuming responsibility for their own self-development and

exercising diligence in pursuing job opportunities for which they are interested and qualified,

including during periods when they are temporarily absent for legitimate reasons (e.g., on detail,

temporary duty assignment, leave, at military training courses in the military service).

Bureau Human Resource Policy Offices are responsible for maintaining oversight of Servicing

HR Offices (SHROs) to ensure adherence to policy and standards and the integrity of the system

and meeting T2H goals; managing the overall vacancies, recruitment, and hiring processes and

procedures, and for issuing any individual bureau guidance that ensures selections are based on

merit after fair and open competition; working with servicing Human Resource Offices to

implement any OPM, DOI regulations or bureau policy related to job evaluation, assessment and

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vacancy announcements.; and implementing management controls to maintain quality assurance

of data entry and overall process.

Department Office of Human Capital is responsible for the overall management of this policy;

assessing compliance through HR independent audit and evaluation processes; and reporting

T2H metrics to Department leadership and OPM; approving exceptions to merit staffing policy

and procedures; and making changes to the program as new government-wide policies are

issued.

Each Bureau/Office will implement requirements that are compatible with its own mission

goals and eliminate services, activities or functions that are not core to Department/Bureau

mission. Effective implementation of a sound MPP plays a key role in selecting, promoting, and

retaining a world-class high-performing, high morale, diverse and inclusive workforce.

1.2

LABOR-MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS

Bureaus/Offices must fulfill their labor-management obligations, as appropriate, prior to

implementing any changes in personnel policies, practices, and working conditions that may

result from implementation of processes contained in this Handbook.

1.3

GENERAL MERIT PROMOTION GUIDELINES

A sound merit staffing program is a responsibility of management and is achieved when hiring

managers continually assess their organization's ability to fulfill the commitments, goals and

objectives that constitute the MPP mission and purpose and establish enhanced efficiencies and

effectiveness within the plan.

Management must plan the structuring of its positions to achieve and maintain the best possible

balance between: mission requirements, the need for each position, economy and efficiency,

skill and knowledge utilization, attraction and retention of qualified staff, employee motivation

and engagement, career development, upward mobility opportunities, and the overall

effectiveness of the structure of the organization.

Supervisors should make every reasonable effort to ensure that employees under their direct

supervision receive appropriate consideration for vacancies which occur under the supervisor’s

immediate jurisdiction while the employee is on an approved, extended absence. Additionally,

each employee is responsible for informing his or her supervisor of those promotional

opportunities for which he/she wishes to be considered during periods of legitimate absence and

for providing his/her supervisor with an updated written application and other required forms for

those vacancies.

1.4

APPLICATION OF COMPETITIVE PROCEDURES

The following actions must follow competitive procedures as required by 5 CFR

335.103(c)(1):

i. Time-limited promotions for more than 120 days to higher graded positions. Prior

service during the preceding 12 months under non-competitive time-limited

promotions and non-competitive details to higher graded positions count toward the

120-day total period.

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ii. Details for more than 120 days to higher-graded positions.

iii. Selection for training that is part of an authorized training agreement, part of a

promotion program, or required before an employee may be considered for a

promotion (5 CFR 410.306).

iv. Reassignment or demotion to a position with greater promotion potential than a

position previously held on a permanent basis in the competitive service (except as

permitted by reduction in force (RIF) regulations.

v. Transfer to a position at a higher grade or with more promotion potential than a

position previously held on a permanent basis in the competitive service (5 CFR

330.705).

vi. Reinstatement of an employee to a permanent or temporary position at a higher

grade or with more promotion potential than a position previously held on a

permanent basis in the competitive service.

vii. When applicable, appointment of other candidates with non-competitive eligibility

under authorities regulated by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), under

interchange agreements with other merit systems, and under miscellaneous

authorities not regulated by OPM (statutes and court orders), to positions higher than

the last equivalent grades held by the employees or to positions which would offer

promotion potential

1.5

APPLICATION OF NON-COMPETITIVE PROCEDURES

Competitive procedures do not apply to the following actions:

i. Upgrading of a position due to application of a new classification standard without a

significant change in duties.

ii. Upgrading of a position resulting from the correction of an initial classification

error.

iii. A promotion resulting from an employee's position being classified at a higher grade

(with no further promotion potential) because of additional duties and

responsibilities, commonly known as accretion of duties. The noncompetitive

upgrade requires the employee to continue to perform the same basic function in the

new position that is a clear successor to and absorbs the duties of the old position.

In addition, there may be no other employees within the organizational unit to whom

the additional duties and responsibilities could have been assigned.

iv. Actions taken under Reduction in Force (RIF). Employees downgraded through no fault

of their own (i.e. RIF) are entitled to noncompetitive priority consideration and

placement for a period of two years from the effective date of the employee's

downgrade.

v. Promotions without current competition when the employee competed earlier for an

assignment intended to prepare the employee for the position being filled, and the

intent was made a matter of record and made known to all potential candidates

(career ladder promotions).

vi. Re-promotion, permanent or temporary, to a grade previously held on a permanent

basis in the competitive service.

vii. Promotion, reassignment, transfer, change to lower grade, or reinstatement of an

employee from a position with known promotion potential to another position

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having no higher promotion potential than any other position previously held on a

permanent basis in the competitive service.

viii. Promotion to a position with a representative pay rate equal to or lower than that of

any position previously held on a permanent basis in the competitive service.

ix. Details to higher-graded positions or temporary promotions not to exceed 120 days.

x. Details made in 120-day increments up to one year to unclassified duties.

xi. Details made in 120-day increments to the same grade or lower-graded positions, up

to one year.

xii. Time-limited promotions made permanent when such a possibility was publicized in

the original competition notice.

xiii. Consideration and/or selection of a candidate not given proper consideration in a

previous competitive promotion action.

See Appendix B for The Competitive Process Overview Chart.

1.6

CAREER TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PLAN (CTAP) & INTERAGENCY

CAREER TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PLAN (ICTAP)

The Department’s Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), as outlined in Personnel Bulletin

(PB) 11-06, is a program that aids in finding employment for individuals who have been or are

likely to be separated by RIF. The CTAP has four components: Career Transition Training and

Support Services, Special Selection Priority (SSP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), and

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP).

CTAP will have varying effects on staffing activities and there is an order of selection when

filling competitive service vacancies that exceed 120 days, as noted in the Department CTAP

policy. All vacancies must be advertised unless the personnel action being taken is an

exception, such as temporary appointments less than 121 days, details, reassignments, career

ladder promotions, accretion of duties, et. al., or a determination has been made by the

servicing HRO, through contact with other bureaus in the local commuting area (LCA) of the

JOA that there are no SSP candidates available.

CTAP and ICTAP requirements must be stated in all job opportunity announcements (JOA).

The selecting official must select a well-qualified* eligible applicant under the SSP component

of CTAP before selecting any other candidate from within or outside the Department, unless

doing so would cause another employee to be separated by RIF. In addition, the reemployment

priority list (RPL) must be cleared before filling any competitive service position from outside

the Department, regardless of whether the organization plans to make a temporary, term, or

permanent appointment. *For Merit Promotion or competitive vacancies that uses an

assessment tool to rate and rank applicants and produces a score, well qualified candidate will

generally be candidates who self-rank themselves with a score of 85 or higher. The definition

of well-qualified must be included in the JOA.

The Department’s bureaus must advertise vacancies with a minimum Area of Consideration

(AOC) of Departmentwide when affected employees on the SSP are likely to meet the

qualifications and eligibility requirements for the position. If there are available SSP eligibles

under the CTAP in the LCA, the minimum AOC will be department-wide unless applying

Section 6 (g) of the DOI CTAP that states “For non-competitive actions, they must ensure that

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no displaced or surplus candidates are available on the CTAP listing maintained by the

Department.” When applying Section 6 (g)of the CTAP, the minimum AOC will be bureau

wide in the LCA. Determining whether there are SSP candidates in the LCA is accomplished

by checking the DOI SSP List of Eligibles or by contacting other DOI bureaus in the LCA.

JOAs should generally be open for a minimum of five (5) business days, however Bureaus and

Offices may determine that there is a business reason to establish an open period for less than

five business days, based on objective factors. In those cases, the reasons should be

documented in the JOA case file. The defined order of selection contained in a CTAP position

must be followed for all actions that aren’t excepted. Hiring that is listed as specifically

excepted from CTAP (temporary appointments less than 90 days, details, career ladder

promotions, accretions of duties, etc.) has minimal to no effect on merit staffing actions.

If there are SSP eligibles who apply for a JOA and meet the defined parameters in a CTAP, one

of them must be hired unless the position is not filled, or recruitment is canceled. Qualified

RPL eligibles within the LCA must be selected prior to selecting a candidate from outside of

the Department. Hiring Managers are encouraged to select RPL eligibles within or outside the

LCA any time they identify a vacancy.

Component

Purpose

When to Clear

Special Selection

Priority (SSP)

Priority consideration of well-qualified

displaced and surplus DOI employees who

apply for vacancies in the local commuting

area.

When filling competitive service positions

from within or outside the Department,

unless selection causes another employee

to be separated by reduction-in-force and

again before a tentative job offer is

extended to a selectee.

Reemployment Priority

List (RPL)

Priority consideration of displaced and surplus

DOI employees and employees who are fully

recovered from a compensable injury after

more than one year.

When filling competitive (temporary, term,

or permanent) positions from outside the

Department and again before a tentative

job offer is extended to a selectee.

Interagency Career

Transition Assistance

Plan (ICTAP)

Priority consideration of well-qualified

displaced employees from other Federal

agencies who apply for vacancies in the local

commuting area.

When filling competitive service positions

from outside the Department.

See Appendix C, OPM Language to be used in ALL JOAs to Explain CTAP and ICTAP.

1.7

TIME-LIMITED PROMOTIONS

A time-limited promotion is an appropriate mechanism for managers to use in filling temporary

positions to accomplish project work, or to meet other temporary needs for a specified period of

no more than five years, unless OPM authorizes the Agency to make and/or extend time-limited

promotions for a longer period. Bureau or Office Human Resources personnel provides the

employee advance written notice of the conditions of the time-limited promotion, or within 30

days from the date of the promotion when the promotion is effected under a non-discretionary

provision (5 CFR 335.102(f)).

Temporary promotions not to exceed 120 days are exempt from competitive procedures.

However, for positions/employees covering under bargaining unit, DOI bureaus and offices

must comply with the requirements in the agreement for non-competitive temporary promotion

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if applicable.

A temporary promotion may be made permanent without further competition, provided (1) the

temporary promotion opportunity was stated in the JOA and the promotion was originally made

under competitive procedures and (2) it was made known to all potential candidates that the

temporary promotion might lead to a permanent promotion. If the employee was issued a SF-

50(s) for their temporary promotion, indicating that there is an official record of serving 52

weeks either continuously or cumulatively, then the employee meets time-in-grade for the next

higher grade.

1.8

PERMANENT POSITIONS

“Permanent position" is defined in 5 CFR 531.403 as a position filled by an employee whose

appointment is not designated as temporary and does not have a definite time limitation of 1 year

or less. "Permanent position" includes a position to which an employee is promoted on a

temporary or term basis for at least 1 year. The term does not include a position filled by an

employee whose appointment is limited to 1 year or less and subsequently extended so that the

total time of the appointment exceeds 1 year.

1.9

DETAILS

Employees may be detailed, in 120-day increments, to the same, lower, or higher-grade

positions for up to 1 year. Details of 120 days to higher graded positions in the absence of a

major reorganization must be approved by DOI bureaus and offices Heads/Director’s to extend

for an additional 120 days (maximum period of 240 days).

If a detail of more than 120 days is made to a higher graded position, or to a position with

known promotion potential, it must be made under competitive promotion procedures.

Prior service during the preceding 12 months under non-competitive details to higher graded

positions and non-competitive time-limited promotions count toward the 120-day total period.

Return rights from temporary promotion or detail: (1) At the end of a temporary promotion or

detail, the employee is either returned to his or her original position or to a position anywhere

else in the bureau with the same geographic location (as possible) and of a grade and pay rate

equivalent to that from which originally selected and for which the employee is qualified. An

employee cannot be laterally reassigned to a permanent position at the same grade as that of the

temporary promotion or to a position with higher promotion potential than the position held

prior to the temporary promotion.

1.10

APPOINTMENT TYPES (STATUS)

The Federal Government employs permanent and temporary employees. Permanent employees

are generally hired under a career-conditional appointment (Permanent - Career-Conditional

Appointment). Normally this is the first career-type of appointment and the appointee must

complete a 1-year probationary period and 3 years of total creditable service to attain a career

appointment (Permanent - Career Appointment).

Temporary appointments are defined as appointments expected to last for a specified period not

to exceed 1 year (Temporary Appointment - Time limited not to exceed 1 year but could be

less) or a specified period of time that is at least more than 1-year but not to exceed 4 years

(Term Appointment - Time limited more than one year but not more than 4 years). Neither type

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of appointment is a permanent one, so they do not give the employee competitive/permanent

status.

When announcing for a temporary position, the JOA must include the time limits for the

position, e.g., “not to exceed (NTE) one year.” You may wish to include a statement saying that

the job may be extended for an additional year if the nature of the duties would warrant such a

statement. Jobs lasting a total of 121 days or more must be cleared for Career Transition

Assistance Plan CTAP/ICTAP.

JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS (JOA)

When announcing a position, HR Specialists coordinate recruitment efforts with the selecting

officials, collaborating and consulting to ensure the end product yields positive results. It is

critical that selecting officials give considerable thought when identifying the competencies

and knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA)s required for successful performance in the position

and the depth and breadth of the appropriate area of consideration (AOC). The selecting

official must review and approve the JOA, and, if applicable, can add, delete, or edit

assessment questions and screen-out question(s), if any.

2.1

USA STAFFING

All JOAs will be advertised on the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) USA Jobs

website utilizing OPM’s USA Staffing system. Appropriate USA Staffing policy and

procedural documents must be followed in posting JOAs. All competitive service vacancies

must be posted to USAJOBS when the AOC includes applicants who are not current DOI

employees.

2.2 AREA OF CONSIDERATION (AOC)

AOCs (also referred to as the “Who May Apply” within the JOA) describe the individuals from

whom the Bureaus will accept applications. AOCs will be established to ensure the availability of

a sufficient number of well-qualified candidates. The AOC must be clearly indicated on the JOA.

In determining AOCs, Selecting Officials must consider Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)

goals and objectives, the likelihood of producing sufficient numbers of well-qualified candidates

without unreasonably restricting fair and open competition; advantages and disadvantages of each

recruitment area, results of past recruitment efforts, budgetary/hiring constraints and cost-

effectiveness.

AOCs identified for competitive candidates do not preclude consideration and selection of

candidates eligible for non-competitive appointments. AOCs must be sufficiently broad to ensure

the availability of high-quality candidates, considering the nature and level of the positions

covered. All AOCs must be set to promote fair and open competition and to attract and maintain

a diverse workforce.

When the AOC defined in the JOA fails to identify a sufficient number of well qualified

candidates, and the JOA has not yet closed, the AOC may be expanded. In such situations, the

JOA will be amended to provide notice of the expanded AOC and the open period extended to

allow for receiving additional applications.

Bureaus and Offices may establish minimum AOC that is not more restrictive than bureau-wide

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local commuting area (LCA)." and, only the Bureau Human Resources Officer for Policy may

approve a more restrictive AOC. Requests must be in writing and describe the nature and level of

the position, why the restrictive AOC is appropriate, and how the restrictive AOC will result in

high-quality candidates, not violate fair and open competition, and consider similarly situated

employees (same line of work, series, and grade level in the organizational entity). In addition,

the justification for the restricted AOC must include information supporting the fact that there are

sufficient internal candidates and must include an estimate of the number of eligible candidates

within the proposed AOC.

Candidates eligible to apply/compete in the merit promotion process include individuals who

meet the definition of a status candidate, VEOA eligibles (of which are not limited to a LCA, and

non-competitive candidates; however, the HR Specialist will determine final eligibility using any

specific requirements and qualifications of the JOA, such as:

i. Status applicants must be in the AOC and meet all eligibility and qualification requirements

of the position advertised in the JOA.

ii. When the AOC includes all DOI employees serving on a career or career-conditional

appointment, CTAP eligibles must be included. CTAP applicants must meet the

Department’s requirements to apply and receive priority consideration for the position being

advertised in the JOA.

iii. Allow DOI bureaus and offices discretion when to solicit and accept application from

special appointment authorities whether DOI-wide or Govt-wide. When accepting

applications from candidates outside the DOI workforce, the AOC must include CTAP,

ICTAP, VEOA, and both non-competitive and excepted service eligible (unless there is a

justifiable reason as to why a special appointment authority wouldn’t be appropriate for the

position).

iv. VEOA applicants are eligible to apply and their applications must be accepted when the

AOC of the JOA is outside the Department. Veterans’ preference doesn’t apply to VEOA.

To be considered, a VEOA candidate must apply for the position and meet all eligibility and

qualifications requirements, including time-in-grade, if applicable (time-in-grade applies if

the applicant is a current Federal employee or was separated from Federal service for less

than 52 weeks) and must rate and rank as best qualified candidate.

v. When advertising for permanent positions in the competitive service under merit promotion

procedures applicants eligible under the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act

(LMWFA) should be included in the AOC for department-wide JOAs, but not for bureau-

wide non-land management bureaus.

Applications will only be accepted by those indicated in the AOC. For example, if the AOC was

defined as “Current Federal employees serving on a career or career-conditional appointment”,

then a former Federal employee could not be considered. Likewise, if the AOC did not include

“applicants under a Special Hiring Authority”, then an applicant applying under a special hiring

authority cannot be considered.

2.3 JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (JOA) OPEN PERIODS

Hiring Managers, in consultation with servicing personnel/human resources offices determine the

length of time a JOA will remain open, however all JOAs must be open at least five business

days, or in accordance with current DOI CTAP guidance. Typical open periods are 10 business

days; however, this period can be shorter or longer depending on the need to attract qualified

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diverse applicants. If a JOA is opened for less than five calendar days, the case file must include

written documentation that clearly outlines the reason(s) for opening the JOA for less than five

calendar days. Longer open periods may be used when warranted, e.g. hard to fill positions, the

need to fill several vacancies, temporary seasonal vacancies, etc.

DOI requires bureaus and offices to establish policy on who determines/approve the length of

time a JOA will remain open. Bureaus have the discretion to establish cutoff dates for receipt of

applications based on the closing date of the JOA for applicants submitting hard copy

application packages, the application package must be received by the date specified by the HR

Professional.

2.4 OPEN CONTINUOUS JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS (JOA)

HR Offices may use JOA’s without specific closing dates (up to one year) to advertise recurring

vacancies or where recruitment is expected to be difficult. When a sufficient number of

candidates apply for consideration, the HR Office may establish a register for a period no

greater than six months, from which they may consider candidates for applicable vacancies.

Cut-off date(s) must be identified on the JOA. The following statement must be included:

“Initial consideration will be given to candidates whose applications have been received before

the first cut-off date. Qualification and/or time-in-grade requirements must be met for those

applications submitted by the first cut-off date.”

2.5 JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (JOA) REQUIREMENTS

To promote efficiency in the hiring process and reduce the Time-to-Hire (T2H), every effort is to be

made to share resumes of best qualified applicants among HR staff. HR Specialists are strongly

encouraged to conduct internal pre-recruitment surveys prior to posting a JOA (per local bureau

policies) to see if an opportunity exists to share JOAs and/or certificates. To ensure a valid

opportunity exists, all aspects of the vacancies must be the same, including the title, series, grade(s),

promotion potential, general job responsibilities, location (or note dual locations), selective

placement factors (SPF), competencies documented in the job analysis, KSA’s and any

evaluation/testing requirements stated in the original JOA.

In accordance with the President’s Hiring Reform Initiative, HR Offices should strive to advertise

JOAs that are limited to five pages. Per 5 CFR 330.104, each JOA must contain the following

information:

i. Name of issuing agency;

ii. Announcement number;

iii. Position title, series, pay plan, and grade (or pay rate);

iv. Duty location;

v. Number of vacancies;

vi. Opening date and application deadline (closing date) and any other information

concerning how receipt of applications will be documented, such as by date of receipt,

and considered, such as by cut-off dates in open continuous announcements;

vii. Area of consideration;

viii. Starting pay;

ix. Brief description of duties;

x. Qualification requirements, including knowledge, skills, and abilities or competencies—

including any SPF and/or quality ranking factors (QRF);

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xi. Basis of rating/evaluation methods to be used;

xii. The full performance level of the job;

xiii. What to file;

xiv. Instructions on how to apply;

xv. Information on how to claim veterans' preference, if applicable;

xvi. Contact information;

xvii. Payment (or non-payment) of relocation expenses

xviii. Recruitment or retention incentives, if applicable

xix. CTAP/ICTAP language, including the definition of “well-qualified,” and how candidates

eligible under CTAP/ICTAP may apply, including required proof of eligibility;

xx. Any other special requirements such as items specified for law enforcement (LE) and

Fire positions e.g. Maximum Entry Age for special enhanced retirement coverage; pre-

employment requirements, certifications, licenses, requirement to have and maintain an

LE commission, adequate documentation to determine special retirement and

minimum/maximum age requirements, and SF-50’s to document employee’s time in all

other special retirement covered positions (starting and ending).

xxi. Equal Employment Opportunity nondiscrimination statement

xxii. Reasonable Accommodation statement: Learn more about disability employment and

reasonable accommodations or how to contact an agency.

xxiii. If sharing a certificate of eligibles within DOI, utilize the following verbiage:

Applicants who apply under this job opportunity announcement agree to have their

application, associated documents and applicable personal information shared with

other Bureaus/Offices within the Department of the Interior (DOI) who have vacancies

with the same occupational series, grade, full performance level and in the same

geographic location(s). Applying to this announcement does not replace the need to

apply to other job opportunity announcements for which you wish to receive

consideration.

2.6 JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (JOA) RE-ADVERTISEMENTS

After 180 days, the JOA is considered a new JOA and not a re-advertisement. A JOA meets the

requirements for re-advertisement if:

i. There is no change in the AOC, position title, series, grade and full performance

level, duty station, or job assessment; and

ii. It was previously posted 90 days from the date a certificate(s) was issued or the

date the JOA was cancelled.

2.7 JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (JOA) ADMINISTRATIVE ERRORS

An administrative error is inaccurate or missing information on any aspects of the position that

must be reported to OPM and made known to interested applicants through the JOA on OPM’s

USAJOBS site. If the HR Specialist can fix any administrative error(s) before applicants apply

to the posted JOA, it is not necessary to cancel the JOA and re-advertise. If administrative

errors are discovered after the JOA close date, the HR Specialist must take the following

corrective action:

i. The JOA must be cancelled even if a certificate(s) has been issued to the hiring

manager.

ii. Advise the hiring manager that he/she cannot select from the JOA, but he/she can re-

advertise the JOA without any delay.

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iii. Determine if applicants need to re-apply to be considered for the position.

iv. Include information regarding the re-advertisement on the JOA and instructions to

applicants regarding their application.

Example JOA templates are available on the Department’s Electronic Library of the Interior

Policies (ELIPS).

3 APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY & QUALIFICATIONS

Agency's Merit Staffing Program requires that all eligible applicants be evaluated to determine to

what extent their qualifications exceed the minimum requirements. HR Specialists review the

eligibility, qualifications, and the rating and ranking of the applications according to the evaluation

criteria.

Applicants must meet both eligibility and qualification requirements for the position of interest by

the closing date of the JOA. Specifically,

i. Area of Consideration.

ii. Time-in-grade (TIG) requirements as specified in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.

iii. Time after competitive appointment as specified in 5 CFR 330.502.

iv. Qualification requirements outlined in OPM’s Qualifications Standards for General

Schedule Positions or for Federal Wage System (FWS), wage grade positions, applicants

are evaluated using the OPM Job Qualification System for Trades and Labor Occupations

and the job element examining method

v. Any Selective Placement Factors (SPF)

Whenever there is a minimum education requirement or an applicant is using a combination of

education and experience to be determined as minimally qualified, the applicant must submit a copy

of their transcripts. This also applies to status applicants who are applying to a position as well even

if the position is the same occupation series as the position they serve currently (prior SF-50 is not

an alternative form of documentation to the transcripts). If there is a minimum education

requirement and the applicant fails to provide a copy of their transcript, the applicant will be

removed from further consideration.

If the applicant is using a combination of education and experience to qualify and the applicant fails

to provide a copy of their transcript, the applicant will be evaluated based solely on experience. The

applicant’s original official transcript(s) must be received prior to the extension of a final job offer.

If applicant fails to provide a copy of their transcript(s) within the specified time period, a final job

offer will not be made, and the applicant is removed from further consideration. The HR Specialist

must verify that schools are accredited prior to making job offer(s) when using education to qualify

applicants. Visit the Department of Education’s Database of Accredited Post-Secondary Institutions

and Programs to verify that schools are accredited. All transcripts and related correspondence must

be kept in the case file and Electronic Official Personnel Record (eOPF) if selected.

Education completed from a foreign institution/university must be evaluated by an accredited

organization to ensure that the foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited

institutions in the United States. Visit the Department of Education’s Web site for a listing of

credential evaluation services that can perform this evaluation. When applicable, applicants are

required to submit their foreign education equivalency at the time of application. Applicants who do

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not submit their equivalency at the time of application will be evaluated based on the information

provided. Those deemed tentatively best qualified will be considered and referred to the selecting

official. A copy of the applicant’s foreign education equivalency will be requested by the HR

Specialist prior to extending a job offer. If the applicant fails to provide a copy of the equivalency

within the specified time period, a final job offer will not be made, and the applicant is removed

from further consideration. All equivalencies and related correspondence must be kept in the case

file (and eOPF, if selected).

3.1 VETERANS’S EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES ACT (VEOA)

The Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998, as amended (VEOA) provides preference

eligibles and certain eligible veterans the opportunity to compete for certain positions announced

under an agency’s merit promotion procedures when the agency is filling a permanent, competitive

service position and has decided to solicit candidates from outside its own workforce.

To be eligible to be considered pursuant to VEOA appointment, the veterans’ discharge must be

issued under honorable conditions (honorable or general discharge), AND must be either:

i. A preference eligible (defined in title 5 U.S.C. 2108(3)), OR

ii. A veteran who substantially completed 3 or more years of active service under honorable

conditions.

VEOA eligibles are not subject to geographic area of consideration limitations. VEOA eligibles

must still rate and rank among the best qualified applicants to be considered for appointment. The

preference conferred, in this case, is the opportunity to compete; the statute confers no entitlement

to be selected ahead of non-preference eligible candidates. Veterans’ preference does not apply to

internal agency actions such as promotions, transfers, reassignments and reinstatements.

Current or former Federal employees meeting VEOA eligibility can apply. However, current

employees applying under VEOA are subject to time-in- grade restrictions like any other General

Schedule employee.

"Active Service" under VEOA means active duty in a uniformed service and includes full-time

training duty, annual training duty, full-time National Guard duty, and attendance, while in the

active service, at a school designated as a service school by law or by the Secretary concerned.

"Preference eligible" under VEOA includes those family members entitled to derived preference.

3.2 NON-COMPETITIVE APPLICANTS

Non-competitive applicants are eligible to apply for JOAs when the AOC is open outside the

Department. In addition, certain excepted-service employees (e.g., Pathways, Schedule A

appointments, Veteran Recruitment Appointments (VRA)) eligible for non-competitive conversion

to the competitive service may be eligible to apply when the AOC is Federal-wide.

Non-competitive applicant(s) may include, but are not limited to the following individuals:

i. Veterans who are 30 percent or more disabled (30%)

ii. Veterans who are eligible for veteran recruitment appointment (VRA)

iii. Individuals eligible for an appointment under the special appointment authority for

people with a disability (Schedule A)

iv. Pathways interns and recent graduates who have completed the requirement for the

non-competitive conversion

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v. Appointment of Peace Corps personnel with non-competitive eligibility to a

competitive service position, under 5 CFR 315.607

vi. Applicants under Public Land Corps hiring authorities

vii. Appointment of certain former overseas employees with non-competitive eligibility

to a competitive position, under Executive Order 12721 and 5 CFR 315.608

viii. Appointment of other candidates with non-competitive eligibility under authorities

regulated by OPM, under interchange agreements with other merit systems, and

under miscellaneous authorities not regulated by OPM statutes and court orders (5

CFR 315 and 5 CFR 6.7)

ix. Eligible military spouses

3.3 SCHEDULE ‘A’ APPLICANTS

Applicants with disabilities claiming non-competitive eligibility under Schedule A must submit

proof of their disability at the time of application. Acceptable proof of an individual’s mental

disability, severe physical disability, or psychiatric disability and work readiness is appropriate

documentation (e.g. records, statements, or other appropriate information) issued by a licensed

medical professional (e.g. a physician or other medical professional duly certified by a state, the

District of Columbia, or a U.S. territory to practice medicine); a licensed vocational rehabilitation

specialist (i.e., state or private); a licensed allied health professional; or any Federal agency, state

agency, agency of the District of Columbia, or a U.S. territory that issues or provides disability

benefits.

3.4 30% OR MORE DISABLED VETERANS

The 30% or More Disabled Veteran authority allows an agency to non-competitively appoint any

veteran with a 30% or more service-connected disability as long as eligibility requirements are met:

i. Retired from active military service with a service-connected disability rating of 30%

or more; OR

ii. Have a rating by the Department of Veterans Affairs showing a compensable

service-connected disability of 30% or more.

This authority can be used to make temporary (at least 60 days but not to exceed 1 year) or term

(more than 1 year, but not more than 4) appointments in the competitive service. There is no grade

level restriction. There is no requirement that you be converted to a permanent position, but the

agency has the authority to convert such a position to a permanent position if it chooses to do so.

The agency would first place the veteran on a time limited appointment of at least 60 days and

could then convert that appointment to a permanent appointment at management's discretion. When

the authority is used to meet a time-limited need, the employee will not be converted to a permanent

appointment.

Applicants claiming eligibility for 30% or more disabled veteran MUST submit a copy of their DD-

214s (Member #4 copy) showing their type of discharge and other supportive documents (if

applicable) at the time of application. Preference eligibles or veterans who have been separated

under honorable conditions from the armed forces after completing three or more years of

continuous active military service (as determined by the agency) may compete for vacancies under

merit promotion when the agency accepts applications from individuals outside its own workforce.

All DD-214s received must be kept in the case file (and eOPF, if selected).

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3.5 MILITARY SPOUSE APPLICANTS

Military spouse applicants claiming eligibility via Executive Order 13832, dated May 9, 2018 and

Public Law 115-232 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2019, section

673, August 13, 2018, authorizing the noncompetitive appointment of certain military spouses to

competitive service positions must provide documentation supporting eligibility. The required

documentation includes a valid marriage certificate or other document verifying marriage (such as

any official documentation verifying a recognized common law marriage), a copy of their spouse’s

DD-214 (Member #4 copy), and as applicable – a copy of the military orders assigning the service

member to a certain post (including authorizing the spouse) or a copy of documentation from either

the Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense indicating the service member

has a disability rating of 100% due to a service connected disability. This Executive Order applies

to the following categories of military spouses:

i. Those who are relocating with their service-member spouse as a result of

permanent change of station (PCS) orders

ii. Spouses who are not relocating with their active duty service member,

iii. Spouses of service members who incurred a 100% disability because of the service

member’s active duty service; and

iv. Spouses of service members killed while on active duty.

This appointing authority allows for noncompetitive entry into the competitive service. Those

military spouses who are eligible under this authority do NOT have hiring preference by virtue of

this authority. It does not constitute, establish, or convey a hiring preference. This hiring authority

does not take precedence over other appointment options. Agencies must still clear CTAP, ICTAP,

and RPL before making a selection under this Executive Order.

3.6 EXCEPTED SERVICE APPLICANTS ELIGIBLE FOR COMPETITIVE SERVICE

APPOINTMENTS

Generally, applicants who are eligible for certain excepted service appointing authorities or who are

from excepted agencies that have an agreement with OPM which allows entry into the competitive

service, i.e., Interchange Agreement may be considered for advertised positions.

Servicing HROs can provide more specific information concerning eligibility for excepted service

appointments. Applicants applying for consideration under an excepted appointing authority are

responsible for identifying the particular appointing authority under which consideration is

requested and providing evidence of eligibility for the particular appointing authority by the dates

specified in the JOA. For additional information, refer to PB) 17-13, Excepted Service Policy.

3.7 VETERANS RECRUITMENT APPOINTMENT

Veterans Recruitment Appointment (VRA) is an excepted authority that allows an agency to non-

competitively appoint an eligible veteran that:

i. Served during a war or are in receipt of a campaign badge for service in a

campaign or expedition; OR

ii. are a disabled veteran, OR

iii. are in receipt of an Armed Forces Service Medal (includes the Global War on

Terrorism Service Medal) for participation in a military operation, OR

iv. are a recently separated veteran (within 3 years of discharge), AND

v. separated under honorable conditions (this means an honorable or general

discharge).

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Appointments under this authority can be made at any grade level up to and including a GS-11 or

equivalent. This is an excepted service appointment. Upon satisfactory completion of 2 years of

substantially continuous service, VRA hires will be converted to the competitive service. If an

agency has two or more VRA candidates and at least one is preference eligible, the veterans'

preference procedures of 5 CFR, part 302 of OPM’s regulations must be applied when using the

VRA authority.

Agencies may also use VRA to fill temporary (not to exceed 1 year) or term (more than 1 year but

not to exceed 4 years) positions. If one is employed in a temporary or term position under VRA,

they will not be converted to the competitive service after 2 years. There is no limit to the number

of times one can apply under VRA (or be appointed to a VRA appointment), as long as they meet

the definition of a covered veteran under applicable law.

Applicants claiming eligibility for Veterans Recruitment Appointment MUST submit a copy of

their DD-214s (Member #4 copy) showing their type of discharge and other supportive documents

(if applicable) at the time of application. Preference eligibles or veterans who have been separated

under honorable conditions from the armed forces after completing three or more years of

continuous active military service (as determined by the agency) may compete for vacancies under

merit promotion when the agency accepts applications from individuals outside its own workforce.

All DD-214s received must be kept in the case file (and eOPF, if selected).

Qualified VRA eligibles are listed separately on a VRA certificate, since veteran’s preference

applies. There will be a separate certificate for competitive merit promotion eligibles, which will

include Veterans Employment Opportunities Act eligibles. Because veterans’ preference applies to

both VRA and Schedule A, bureaus may elect to issue a separate certificate if one or more of the

applicants have veterans’ preference. There is no requirement to do so, however it may assist the

hiring manager in managing the selection process and allow for efficient audit and validation of

selections before making a job offer.

4 RATING, RANKING, AND REFERRAL

Competitive candidates are rated and ranked based on their résumés and selection of the defined

levels of competencies and KSAs that best describe their level of experience.

Applicants eligible for the various non-competitive appointing authorities who meet the

qualifications standards as well as any SPFs and other eligibility requirements identified for the

position in the JOA are considered eligible and are referred regardless of their rating and ranking.

The appropriate use of other assessment tools (e.g., USA Hire) may be used in accordance with

availability and adherence to other applicable Departmental assessment policy.

Note: Both VRA and Schedule A hiring authorities require application of veterans’ preference i.e.

you may not select a non-veteran over a veteran Schedule A eligible.

A copy of the Hiring Tools at a Glance will be available on the Department’s Electronic Library of

the Interior Policies (ELIPS): https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/hiring-tools-at-a-glance-

1.pdf to assist in additional flexible hiring authorities.

4.1 RATING & RANKING EVALUATION PANELS

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Evaluation panels may be convened, or a Subject Matter Expert may be used as appropriate.

Selecting officials, in conjunction with the servicing personnel office, determine when a panel is

needed, and select the personnel to serve on the panel. Factors in making this decision include the

complexity and organizational level of the vacant position, any controversy surrounding the JOA

and the number of applicants. If convened, these panels consist of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) at

an equivalent or higher-grade level than the FPL of the position being filled; typically, the number

of panel members is three.

4.2 REFERRAL LISTS (CERTIFICATE OF ELIGIBLES)

Referral lists are generated from the results of the rating and ranking process. These lists may

include:

i. Candidates who lost consideration or were demoted without personal cause (e.g.,

RIF); these employees are referred ahead of others.

ii. Well qualified ICTAP candidates who are eligible for special selection consideration

under ICTAP regulations as outlined in 5 CFR 330 Subpart G.

iii. Promotion eligibles.

iv. VEOA eligibiles.

v. Transfer eligibles from other Federal agencies, or reassignment eligible from another

organization within DOI.

vi. Candidates who are eligible for consideration under other noncompetitive

authorities.

HR Offices are to issue separate referral lists for competitive and non-competitive candidates at

each grade level and location advertised. All non-competitive candidates, within the AOC

regardless of their score, will be referred as long as they meet the qualifications for the position.

Applicants will be referred in alphabetical order.

When two or more VRA candidates are qualified and one or more is a preference eligible, veterans’

preference must be applied as outlined in 5 CFR 302 and a separate referral list will be issued for

the VRA candidates in veteran's preference order.

4.3 LATE APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Preference Eligibles and Schedule A eligible applicants filing after the closing date of a JOA will be

considered under the non-competitive application process. Preference eligibles filing within 10

calendar days of the closing date of an announcement and when a selection has not been made will

be considered and placed on a separate certificate, if qualified. The applicable JOA identification

number must be provided by the applicant to be considered under this process. The same rating and

ranking criteria will be used in evaluating this applicant as was used for each group referred under

merit promotion.

4.4 RECONSIDERATION OF RATING

A reconsideration of a rating may be provided upon request from the applicant who believes their

rating is in error. Their request for reconsideration must be in writing to the servicing HR Office or

the HR Specialist who evaluated the applicant. No additional application information or materials

may be submitted after the closing date of the JOA. Upon receiving the applicant' s request for

reconsideration, the HR specialist who made the original rating decision must conduct the review in

consultation with the team lead or first line supervisor. The response to the reconsideration of the

original rating decision must contain a full explanation of the reasons for the decision. If the

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reconsideration prompts a rating change, the applicant' s record and the certificate of eligibles,

providing it has not been issued, must reflect the change. If the certificate of eligibles has been

issued, it should not be amended unless:

i. The new rating is "eligible;"

ii. Veterans' preference points were improperly awarded; or

iii. The rating error was erroneous certification.

If an applicant submits an appeal of the 1st reconsideration decision, a second level review must be

conducted by the Supervisor. The 2nd reconsideration decision is final, and no further

reconsideration is required.

Bargaining unit employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) may file a

negotiated grievance regarding their rating if such matters are not otherwise excluded from the

applicable negotiated grievance procedures. However, for non-bargaining unit employees, the DOI

Administrative Grievance Procedures (AGP), 370 DM 771, 1.7(B)(3), excludes grievances related

to a selection process, including non-selection from a group of properly ranked and certified

candidates. There is no right of appeal to OPM, but OPM may conduct investigations of substantial

violations of OPM requirements.

Where employees are in a bargaining unit and covered by a collective bargaining agreement (CBA),

and the applicable negotiated grievance procedures (NGP) do not exclude these matters, bargaining

unit employees must use the NGP to file a grievance. They may not, even if such matters were

covered, use the administrative grievance procedure (AGP). The AGP excludes matters related to

the selection process.

4.5 PRIORITY CONSIDERATION DUE TO MERIT PROMOTION VIOLATION

Priority consideration is an effort to correct a prior Merit Promotion violation, such as missed

consideration. In accordance with 5 CFR 335.103(c) (3) (vi), consideration of a candidate not given

proper consideration in a competitive promotion action will be an exception to competition. The

candidate must be notified in writing that they are eligible for a one-time priority referral for a like

position, i.e., same grade, minimum qualifications requirements, and organizational location of the

original competitive announcement. This candidate will be referred, non-competitively, after CTAP

candidates, but ahead of other candidates.

4.6 ADMINISTRATIVE ERROR RESULTING IN NON-REFERRAL

When a candidate was not referred to the selecting official, due to an administrative error, the

following procedures will be applied:

If a selection has not been made;

i. The selecting official is notified immediately,

ii. HR amends the certificate

If a selection has been made and it is prior to selectee’s entry on duty;

i. The offer will be rescinded,

ii. The selecting official and the selectee are notified immediately,

iii. The certificate is amended

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If a selection has been made and the selectee has already entered on duty, the candidate will receive

consideration on the next available certificate for the same grade, title and series and location. This

procedure is only required if the candidate is determined to be among the “best qualified” group of

candidates that should have been originally certified to the selecting official. The candidate is

entitled to consideration concurrently with any other candidate with similar entitlement, as an

exception to the competitive procedures, but before a list of other best qualified candidates is

provided and before any other action is taken to fill the vacancy (with the exception of CTAP and

ICTAP).

The selecting official is not required to select these candidates but must fully and fairly consider

them. A candidate is entitled to only one instance of priority consideration for each instance of lost

consideration. Candidates who meet the criteria will receive consideration for the next appropriate

vacancy in the same grade, title and series, and location. The candidate’s eligibility for such referral

will expire after one referral or after one year from the date in which he/she lost consideration,

whichever comes first.

4.7 REFERRAL LISTS SUSPENSE DATE

Referral lists will be issued to the selecting official with a suspense date of not more than 90

calendar days from the date the referral list is issued. Selecting officials may request an extension of

a referral list from their HR Officer or designee on a case-by-case basis. The reason(s) for

requesting an extension of a referral list beyond the initial 90 calendar days must be submitted to the

HR Officer in writing. The HR Officer, or his/her designee, may extend referral lists in two-week

increments. Referral lists may not be extended beyond a total of 120 days total from the original

referral list issue date unless rare circumstances occur. The written justification must be maintained

in the case file. Requests for the extension of referral list(s) will only be approved when

management has provided a reasonable rationale for extending the expiration date of the referral

list.

A referral list may be used within 90 days from initial selection when vacancies with all the same

conditions occur. These conditions include the same title, series, grade, target grade, Bureau, and

type of appointment (i.e. permanent, temporary or term).

If a referral list is less than 90 days old, based on issuance date, the referral list may be used to make

a selection for a like position (same series, grade(s), and location) without issuing a new, separate

JOA if the original JOA indicated that multiple positions may be filled. Management is not required

to select from prior JOA referral lists for like positions.

5 INTERVIEWS

A selecting official and/or interview panel may interview some, all or none of the referred

candidates. Selecting officials and/or interview panels will ensure that all interviews are properly

conducted, all questions are job-related, and that every effort is made to obtain the same information

from each candidate. Interviewers may not ask about or discuss a candidate’s race, color, religion,

sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, age (as defined by the Age

Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended), disability, genetic information (including

family medical history), marital status, political affiliation, sexual orientation, labor organization

affiliation or non- affiliation, status as a parent, or any other non-merit-based factor. Establish the

same requirements for Interview panel as established for Evaluation Panels in Section 4.1 (e.g.

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individuals must be at the same grade or higher or equivalent; consist of 3 or more who are

knowledge of the position, etc.)

Unsuccessful efforts to contact candidates, declination of interviews, not reporting for interviews,

etc., must be documented by the selecting official and maintained with the merit promotion case

file.

Selecting officials are highly encouraged to conduct reference checks. Conducting reference checks

is not mandatory. However, conducting reference checks are a best practice for selection of

successful candidates.

5.1 PAYMENT OF INTERVIEW TRAVEL EXPENSES

To the extent possible, it is recommended that all interviews be held in the same manner. If distance

precludes a personal interview, video or telephone interviews may be conducted, or the payment of

expenses for in-person interviews may be authorized.

In accordance with 5 CFR 572.101(b) selecting officials may determine which interviewees are

eligible for payment of pre- employment interview travel expenses. Payment of these travel

expenses will be in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulations.

6 SELECTIONS

Selecting officials must base their selections using job-related factors. The selecting official is not

required to select from the competitive referral list. The job may be filled by some other type of

internal action or by appointment from outside the agency. Candidates from other sources may be

considered concurrently or in any sequence. The selecting official may choose to fill a vacancy

noncompetitively as long as such action is consistent with appropriate approved exceptions to merit

promotion procedures (VRA, Pathways Program, reassignments), and CTAP requirements.

The hiring manager may select or not select from the certificate(s) issued to him/her for the

position. If the hiring manager makes a selection, he/she must follow the servicing HR office

instructions for documenting his/her selection(s) and the dates he/she conducted the interview (if

applicable). If a certificate was not used, which means none of the candidates were interviewed, the

hiring manager can annotate “certificate not used.”

6.1 NUMBER OF SELECTIONS

If the JOA was advertised for one position, the selecting official can make only one selection unless

the language in the JOA allows for more than one selection. The standard language provides that

more than one position can be filled from an announcement.

6.2 RETURNING REFERRAL LISTS

Selecting officials are required to return referral lists to the HR Office within 90 calendar days after

receipt. Selecting officials are encouraged to indicate secondary selectees in addition to their

primary selection. Selecting official’s and/or interview panel’s notes and responses to interview

questions should not be included in the merit promotion case file but retained by the selecting

official. For all selections, the hiring manager must sign as the selecting official.

6.3 NON-SELECTIONS

A selecting official who returns the referral lists without any candidate(s) chosen must provide an

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explanation. The selecting official may request that the AOC be extended to recruit additional

candidates; fill the vacancy by other means (e.g., detail, reassignment); or formally withdraw or

cancel the request to fill the vacancy, specifying the reason. Upon receipt of a withdrawal

justification, Hiring Managers will evaluate subsequent requests to fill the same or similar vacancies

occurring within 30 days of the non-selection.

Non-selection is when the hiring manager does not make a selection from a valid selection

certificate(s) issued from an advertised JOA due to one of the following reasons (note: non-

selection because of any of the issues below is justification for re-advertisement before or after the

expiration date of the selection certificate(s):

i. There were fewer than 10 best qualified (BQ) candidates on the merit promotion

competitive promotion certificate and few or no non-competitive candidates. If the

position was advertised at multiple grade levels, the total number of applicants must be

used to determine if re-advertisement is justified.

ii. Regardless of the number of BQ candidates, the majority or all declined the interview or

job offer.

iii. The hiring manager can provide information (review of application, interview, or

reference check) that the candidate(s) lacked the necessary skills to perform the work

(exaggerated responses and resumé).

iv. The hiring manager and the HR Specialist determine there was a problem with the job

analysis and Job Questionnaire Assessment that affected the quality evaluation of the

applicants.

The HR Specialist must determine if applicants need to re-apply to be considered for the position.

The HR Specialist must also include information regarding the re-advertisement on the JOA and

instructions to applicants regarding their application).

The hiring manager must provide the servicing HR Specialist information on non-selections and

cancellations of JOAs to maintain in the merit promotion JOA case file. If the request to advertise a

previous JOA is not covered by one of the situations described above, the hiring manager and HR

Specialist must wait 180 days before posting a new JOA. The 180 days starts after the date the

hiring manager provides written notification to HR that he/she took no action on the previous JOA.

7 EMPLOYMENT OFFERS

Job offers are not valid unless they are extended by a member of the servicing HRO. All selections

are considered tentative until the servicing HRO has conducted all pre-employment processes, e.g.,

security clearance, medical examination, drug tests, etc. HR Specialists will have three workdays,

after receipt of the selection package to extend tentative job offers. The pre-employment process

must be initiated by the servicing HRO within 10 working days after acceptance of the job offer.

Official job offers will be extended within two workdays after completion of the pre-employment

process.

8 RELEASE OF EMPLOYEES

Employees are normally released within two weeks of official notification of selection for a

promotion and within four weeks for a reassignment, change to a lower grade, or detail (unless

travel is involved, or an action is delayed due to required clearances such as drug testing and

security). When mutually agreeable to both the gaining official and the releasing official, the release

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date may be extended. Relocating employees and the gaining supervisor are jointly responsible for

working out reporting dates, which will minimize relocation expenses. Reporting dates will be

established far enough in advance, or otherwise managed in conjunction with current DOI Finance

guidance for relocating employees, to minimize temporary quarters and household goods storage

expenses. Movement and transfers in the middle of pay period will result in T&A and payroll

deductions problems.

9 AUDTING CERTIFICATES

Within 10 days of finalizing the selection/making the official job offer, the servicing HR office

must notify all the other applicants who were referred on the certificate(s) of the status of the job.

HR Specialist must make every effort to close out and audit vacancy announcements within 30 days

of finalizing the selection; and 10 days upon receiving notification from the hiring manager to

cancel the vacancy.

Reissuing a selection certificate from an audited JOA. If the person selected declines a confirmed

job offer within 90 days of expiration of the selection certificate(s), the HR Specialist may reissue

the certificate to the hiring manager. If this happens, the hiring manager may make another selection

within 30 days of reissuance of the certificate.

When no selection(s) are made. The servicing HR office should cancel the JOA and audit the

certificate of eligibles within 10 days after receiving the hiring manager’s decision of non-

selection/cancellation.

10 ACCRETION OF DUTIES

An accretion-of-duties is a rare situation when an employee’s duties and responsibilities have

expanded, which can occur because the scope of the work has increased over time, usually as an

evolutionary process and not specifically as a result of management assigning new work or

responsibilities, or the impact of the person in the job.

Title 5 U.S.C. Chapter 23 Merit System Principles, and Title 5 CFR 335, Promotion and Internal

Placement ensure equitable treatment of all employees for accretion-of-duties situations. 5 CFR

335.103(c)(3)(ii), allows agencies, at their discretion, to exclude from competitive procedures

those promotions resulting from an employee’s position being classified at a higher grade because

of additional duties and responsibilities.

Both OPM and Merit Systems Protection Board recognize the propriety and utility of accretion

promotions. Both, however, caution that misuse undermines the trust employees must have in

the merit promotion/assignment process, and may result in increased complaints, grievances or

violations of Merit System Principles.

Promotions based on accretion of duties are rare occurrences and used only in those situations

where the appropriate basis for an exception to the competitive process exists. Promotions based

on job accretion are recognized exceptions to the merit promotion process. Managers, supervisors

and servicing HR offices will ensure that a reasonable and accurate career ladder is established

before a position is filled. Following good management practices, supervisors must be aware of

the duties assigned or assumed by their staff, and exercise vigilance for changes that result in the

unintentional growth or erosion of assignments sufficient to affect grade level.

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The Servicing HRO notifies and consult with Bureau Policy HRO on requests for accretion of

duties. Consult PB 18-03, Position Management and Position Classification Policy and

Handbook for more information.

In order for an employee to be promoted, using an accretion of duties, as an exception to merit

promotion procedures, all of the following criteria must be met:

i. The employee is not assigned to a Standard PD and/or identical additional

position. A promotion based on an accretion of duties involving one incumbent

is prohibited when multiple incumbency (“identical-additional”) positions exist

within the same organizational unit, and/or when there are other employees in

similar positions within the organizational unit. “Organizational unit” is defined

as immediate organizational entity, component or group of employees directed

by a supervisory position.

ii. The employee is the only one in the organizational unit to whom the additional

duties and responsibilities could be assigned and/or who is capable of performing

the new duties.

iii. A desk audit was performed. Results are documented in an evaluation

statement/report that documents the performance of higher-graded work

performed by the employee.

iv. The complexity, range and/or level of difficulty in the duties and responsibilities

of a position have gradually increased over a significant period of time (i.e.,

approximately one year or longer) usually as an evolutionary process and not

specifically as a result of management assigning new work or responsibilities, or

the impact of the person in the job. The new duties comprise at least 25% of the

employee’s time on a regular basis, are based on recurring responsibilities that

require a higher level of knowledge, skill and/or ability, and the additional duties

are considered major and grade-controlling, not merely new or different work.

v. The employee continues to perform the same basic functions of the former

position, the major duties of the employee’s former position are absorbed into the

new position, and the employee’s position description (PD) is re-described

incorporating the additional duties and responsibilities.

vi. The additional duties and responsibilities are expected to be performed on a regular

basis.

vii. The new position has no further promotion potential.

viii. The promotion is not based on projected duties.

ix. The additional duties and responsibilities do not adversely affect another

encumbered position, such as abolishing the position, eroding its current grade or

reducing its known promotion potential.

x. The new position does not involve the addition of supervisory or leader

responsibilities (i.e., the position does not change from non-supervisory to a

supervisory or leader position).

xi. The new position does not involve reclassification from a one-grade interval

series to a two-grade interval series or across occupational series.

xii. The employee meets all qualifications and eligibility requirements for the position.

xiii. The proposed upgrade is in conformance with Merit Promotion plans and

all other applicable statutes, rules, and regulations.

xiv. The impacted employee(s) meet(s) all qualification and time-in-grade

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requirements (Applies to GS positions only.) [5 CFR 300 subpart F].

xv. A position description is classified for the new position.

xvi. Incumbent will be reassigned/promoted to the new position.

xvii. There is no reduction-in-force or transfer of function being planned or

implemented within the organization.

The following documents will be included in each promotion record that is based on the addition of

higher-graded duties:

i. The original position description;

ii. The accreted position description;

iii. The evaluation statement for the new position, and;

iv. Certification that a desk audit was conducted.

See Appendix D: Accretion of Duties Eligibility Checklist

11 DUE WEIGHT

When reviewing merit promotion applicants, selecting officials have an obligation under 5 CFR

335.103(b)(3) which requires that methods of evaluation for promotion and placement, and for

selection for training that leads to promotion, provide due weight to performance appraisals and

incentive awards. This will be done by completing the Supervisory Due Weight Certification Form

(see Appendix E: Supervisory Certification—Due Weight for Performance Appraisals and Awards).

The documentation must be completed, signed and uploaded to the merit promotion case file in

USA Staffing when a selection has been made and the certificate is returned. Each Region and all

SHROs must adhere to this policy and may not establish regional or local policy or procedures that

conflict with this service-wide policy. Completed due weight certifications must be retained for no

less than 3 years.

11.1 DUE WEIGHT – USED CERTIFICATES

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) audits due weight and therefore, due weight is a

regulatory requirement. A certification form must be completed for each merit promotion certificate

used by the selecting official, regardless of competitive status. For this purpose, a used certificate is

any certificate on which the selecting official takes any of the following actions:

i. Reviews any part of an application package (receiving, opening, and looking at the

names on a certificate is not considered a review of the application package)

ii. Interviews an applicant

iii. Checks references for an applicant

iv. Conducts availability checks for an applicant

v. Makes a selection

vi. Makes annotations (other than being unused) on the certificate

11.2 DUE WEIGHT—REQUIRED JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (JOA)

LANGUAGE

All JOAs must contain language describing how due weight is applied in the ‘Required Documents’

section: Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list

of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step

increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award

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documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will

review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection

process. If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, please submit a

statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance

appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level.

11.3 DUE WEIGHT—REQUIRED ASSESSMENT QUESTION

The required (5 CFR § 335.103(b)(3)) non-rated question must be placed in the assessment

questionnaire:

My performance is at an acceptable level and I am not serving under a Notice of Opportunity to

Demonstrate Acceptable Performance (NODAP).

A. Yes

B. No

The due weight assessment question is a “flag” for a manager. It is not used as a screen out,

therefore a negative response would not remove an applicant from consideration. Regardless of how

an applicant responds to the assessment question, due weight documentation (i.e. the most recent

performance appraisal or a statement as to why one is not available) should be provided and is

required documentation for current and former federal employees. HR should redact any sensitive

information prior to providing to the selecting official.

Performance and award documentation from other agencies or private industry require due weight

consideration regardless of the format. Managers should use their best judgement when deciding

how to review outside performance appraisals.

If an applicant withdraws from consideration on an unused certificate, then due weight does not

need to be applied. However, if an applicant withdraws from a used certificate, due weight would

still need to be applied to the other applicants on the used certificate.

SHROs must provide a quarterly report of merit promotion cases. A reporting template can be

found in Appendix F: Due Weight Recordkeeping.

12 COMPLAINTS & RELEASE OF INFORMATION

The Bureau Personnel/Human Resource Office shall respond promptly to questions or complaints

about the program or about a specific selection action. Bureaus should develop procedures to

address corrective actions due to procedural violations or administrative error. An employee of the

Bureau may submit a complaint under the Bureaus grievance procedure or under a negotiated

grievance procedure as appropriate.

Non-selection from a list of properly ranked and certified applicants is not grieveable (370 DM

1.7(B)(3)).

An employee cannot use the grievance procedures and the EEO complaint process at the same time

for the same issue.

If a candidate feels that he/she has been discriminated against in the merit process on the basis of

race, color, religion, sex, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, or age,

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every effort will be made to handle the matter on an informal basis with the assistance of an EEO

counselor. If the matter cannot be resolved informally, the candidate may submit a formal complaint

according to the procedures for handling equal employment opportunity complaints.

The following information may be released to an applicant or his/her designee when requested:

i. Whether the requesting applicant was qualified and/or referred for selection;

ii. Who was selected;

iii. The applicant’s supervisory appraisal and rating on the ranking elements;

iv. Procedures used to arrive at the final scores, and cut off scores; or

v. Any other information allowed by the Freedom of Information Act or the Privacy Act.

Documentation in the case file must be sufficient for a reviewer to reconstruct the action in its

entirety, including reasons for determining not qualified, qualified, well-qualified and best qualified

applicants. The case file must be maintained electronically in the automated hiring management

system and should include, at a minimum, the following information:

i. Case File checklist

ii. SF-52, Request for personnel action or equivalent

iii. Position description for all grade levels recruited, to include the full performance level

iv. Justification from management, if the JOA is open for less than five calendar days

v. The reference to the OPM occupational qualification standard applied or a copy of the

OPM-approved standard if it is different from the OPM qualification standard

vi. Evaluation criteria, including the job analysis, crediting plan*, SPFs, and other data for

each grade level that documents the validity and job relatedness of the assessment

material used to evaluate applicants. *See Appendix G: Guidance on Devising Crediting

Plans.

vii. DOI Relocation Expense Worksheet (https://www.doi.gov/pfm/travel/Relocation-Expense-

Worksheet)

viii. Documentation verifying the dates RPL and SSP were cleared in accordance with policy

ix. USAJOBS Job Opportunity Announcement

x. Qualifications and eligibility determinations for applicants

xi. Documentation for adjusting applicant answers when using an automated qualification,

rating, and ranking system, if applicable

xii. Referral List(s) of eligibles including criteria and documentation supporting actions

taken to close out the referral list(s)

xiii. Any written guidance and instructions issued to the interview panel, if applicable

xiv. Evidence of notifications to applicants via the automated hiring management system

xv. Declinations/withdrawals of consideration from applicant, if applicable

xvi. Name(s) of individual(s) selected and the justifications why the applicant was selected

xvii. SF-50, Personnel Action of selected applicant

xviii. Electronic annotation by hiring official as to why a referral list is returned unused and/or

cancelled

xix. Written documentation as to why an HR Officer or designee approved a request from the

selecting official asking to re-advertise a vacant position when there were at least three

applicants remaining on a referral list, if applicable

xx. Evidence the electronic case file is closed out and selectee is coded as hired

xxi. Any other information that may be needed to sufficiently reconstruct or support actions

taken during the qualification, evaluation and selection process

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APPENDIX A: DEFINITIONS

30% or more Disabled Veteran: The 30% or More Disabled Veteran authority allows an agency

to non-competitively appoint any veteran with a 30% or more service-connected disability.

Accretion of Duties: Promotion of an employee whose position is reclassified at a higher grade due

to the performance of additional duties and responsibilities.

Agency: The term ‘Agency’ refers to the Department.

Area of Consideration (AOC): The organizational and/or geographic boundaries within which a

search is made for eligible candidates for a specific merit promotion and placement action. AOC

may be defined geographically, organizationally, by recruitment source or appointment status. All

AOCs must be set to promote fair and open competition and to maintain a diverse workforce.

Appointing Authority: The legal or regulatory basis to which a specific appointment may be made

to a Federal civilian position.

Assessment: A method used to measure the degree to which an applicant possesses the

competencies/KSAs necessary for successful job performance. The list of multiple-choice questions

on which an applicant self-rates based on their qualifications or competencies. Other examples of

assessment instruments include rating schedules, written tests, work samples, and structured

interviews.

Best Qualified Candidates: Applicants determined by the rating and ranking process to possess the

job-related knowledge, skills, and abilities required or desired in applicants for a particular position

to a greater degree than other qualified applicants being considered, and who are subsequently

referred to the selecting official.

Career Ladder: Grade range from the entry level through and including the previously established

full performance level of a position.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP): A Federal placement program that provides priority

consideration for job opportunities to certain individuals who have been or will be adversely

impacted by Federal downsizing activities.

Career Promotion: Promotions without current competition when the employee competed earlier

for an assignment intended to prepare the employee for the position being filled, and the intent was

made a matter of record and made known to all potential candidates.

Certificate: A document referred to the selecting official containing the names of eligible

candidates.

Change to Lower Grade: For this Handbook, the term ‘change to lower grade’ refers to a

voluntary reduction in an employee’s current grade level or representative rate.

Competency: An observable, measurable pattern of skills, knowledge, abilities, behaviors, and

other characteristics that an individual needs to perform work roles or occupational functions

successfully. Competencies are typically required at different levels of proficiency depending on the

specific work role or occupational function.

Competitive Service: All civilian positions that are: (a) in the executive branch of the Federal

Government not specifically excepted from civil service laws by or pursuant to statute, by the

President, or by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and not in the Senior Executive

Service; and (b) all positions in the legislative and judicial branches of the Federal Government and

in the Government of the District of Columbia specifically made subject to the civil service laws by

statute.

Competitive Status: Basic eligibility of a person selected to fill a position in the competitive

service. Competitive status may be acquired by career-conditional or career appointment through

open competitive examination or may be granted by statute, executive order, or civil service rules.

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A person with competitive status may be promoted, transferred, reassigned, reinstated, or demoted

subject to the conditions prescribed by civil service rules and regulations.

Crediting Plan: A plan developed through the process of job analysis used to rate and rank

qualified applicants for a position. It consists quality ranking factors with typically three quality

level descriptions for each factor.

Cut-off Date: The date after which applications will continue to be accepted but will not be given

initial consideration. A cut-off date may be useful where large numbers of applications are expected

over an extended period of time, and there is an immediate need to fill a position. If a cut-off date is

established, it must be stated in the job announcement.

Detail: A temporary assignment of an employee to a different position for a specified period, with

the employee returning to his or her regular duties at the end of the assignment. While on detail the

employee continues to hold their official position from which detailed and keeps the same status

and pay.

Direct Hire Authority (DHA): an appointing (hiring) authority that the Office of Personnel

Management (OPM) can give to Federal agencies for filling vacancies when a critical hiring need or

severe shortage of candidates exists. Utilizing a DHA requires prior public notice, as prescribed in 5

U.S.C. 3327 and 3330, and 5 CFR 330, subpart G. Chapter 2, section A, of the Delegated

Examining Unit (DEU) Handbook states that DHA JOAs are part of case exam recruitment, not

merit promotion.

Delegated Examining Unit (DEU): DEU is competitive examining, known as “open to the public”

only. It does not apply to merit promotion, the excepted service, or the Senior Executive Service.

Agencies may be granted delegated examining authority under section 1104 of title 5, United States

Code (USC).

Due Weight: A review process used to provide consideration to performance appraisals and awards

submitted with each application on a used merit promotion certificate and factoring the results into

the merit promotion selection process.

Evaluation Panel: Evaluation panels are established to rate and rank candidates, and generally

consist of individuals at the same or higher-grade level than the full performance level of the

position to be filled who are familiar with the requirements of the job and occupation. Qualified

candidates are evaluated based on the quality ranking factors identified for the position.

Excepted Service: Positions in the Federal civil service not subject to the appointment

requirements of the competitive service. Exceptions to the normal competitive requirements are

authorized by law, executive order or regulation.

Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program (FEORP): The Federal Equal Opportunity

Recruitment Program requires agencies to establish targeted recruitment programs for categories of

positions where a determination of underrepresentation, manifest imbalance, or conspicuous

absence of women and/or minorities has been made.

Federal Wage System (FWS): The FWS is a uniform pay-setting system that covers Federal

appropriated fund and non-appropriated fund blue-collar employees who are paid by the hour.

Full Performance Level (FPL): The highest-grade level to which an employee may be promoted

through successive noncompetitive career promotions.

General Schedule (GS): The General Schedule (GS) pay system covers the majority of civilian

white-collar Federal employees in professional, technical, administrative, and clerical positions. GS

classification standards, qualifications, pay structure, and related human resources policies (e.g.

general staffing and pay administration policies) are administered by OPM on a Government wide

basis. The General Schedule has 15 grades - GS-1 (lowest) to GS-15 (highest). Each grade has 10

step rates (steps 1-10).

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Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan for Displaced Employees (ICTAP): ICTAP

provides eligible displaced federal employees with interagency selection priority for vacancies that

are being filled from outside the Agency’s competitive service workforce. The ICTAP selection

priority does not prohibit movement of permanent competitive service employees within the

Agency.

Interview Panels: Used to further screen all applicants referred to the selecting official to

determine those who will be recommended for an interview by the selecting official. At least one

panel member must be a subject-matter expert. To the extent possible, all panels must consist of

individuals at the same or higher-grade level than the full performance level of the position being

filled. Every effort should be made to ensure that the panel is made up of diverse individuals.

Job Analysis: The analysis of a position to identify the basic duties and responsibilities; the

knowledge, skills and abilities required to perform the duties and responsibilities; and the factors

that are important in evaluating candidates for the position.

Job Opportunity Announcement (JOA): Also known as “vacancy announcement”, describes all

requirements of the position and instructs the applicant on how to apply to the position, including

necessary applicant documentation. JOAs must be posted on the USAJOBS website as a means of

satisfying the competitive procedure requirement.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): The attributes required to perform a job which are

generally demonstrated through qualifying experience, education, or training. Knowledge is a body

of information applied directly to the performance of a function. Skill is a present, observable

competence to perform a task with ease and proficiency. Ability is a present competence to perform

an observable behavior or a behavior that results in an observable product.

Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA): On August 7, 2015, the President

signed the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act, P.L. 114-47 (the “Act”), which was

amended by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017, dated

December 23, 2016. The Act allows certain individuals who are serving or who have served under a

time-limited competitive service appointment in a land management agency to compete for a

permanent position in the competitive service when the hiring agency is accepting applications

under merit promotion procedures. Individuals must have served for an accumulative of 24 months

without a 2-year break in service. Land Management bureaus include BIA, BLM, BOR, USFWS,

and NPS.

Local commuting area: The geographic area that usually constitutes one area for employment

purposes. It includes any population center (or two or more neighboring ones) and the surrounding

localities in which people live and can reasonably be expected to travel back and forth daily to their

usual employment (5 CFR 351.203).

Merit Promotion: Besides current and former employees, other candidates are eligible to apply to

merit promotion announcements such as VRA, VEOA, and Military Spouses. If the position has

promotion potential for a current or former Federal employee, merit promotion procedures are

applicable. Candidates who are “bidding” on a promotion must compete with others and a selection

is made from amongst the best qualified candidates.

Merit Staffing: Internal agency staffing that allows Federal jobs to be filled outside of, but in the

spirit of, open competitive examining procedures.

Merit System Principles: Statutory Federal employment principles contained in 5 USC Section

2301, Merit Systems Principles. These principles were established to ensure appointments and

promotions are based on open and fair competition; and that employment practices are based on

job-related competencies.

Military Spouses: Executive Order (EO) 13473 authorized the noncompetitive appointment of

29 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

certain military spouses to competitive service positions (5 CFR 315.612). Recent provisions have

significantly impacted the non-competitive hiring authority of military spouses as found in EO

13832, “Enhancing Noncompetitive Civil Service Appointments of Military Spouses” signed by the

President on May 9, 2018.

Minimum Qualifications: Qualifications an applicant must possess to be minimally qualified for

hire or promotion under the competitive system as defined in OPM’s General Schedule and Federal

Wage System.

Noncompetitive Action: An appointment to or placement in a position in the competitive service

that is not made under competitive procedures for an open competitive examination and that is

usually based on current or prior Federal service. A noncompetitive action includes (1) all of the

types of actions described under in-service placement; (2) appointments of non-Federal employees

whose public or private enterprise positions are brought into the competitive service under 5 CFR

316.701; and (3) appointments and conversions to career and career-conditional employment made

under special authorities covered in 5 CFR 315.

Noncompetitive Eligibles: Individuals who can be placed in a vacant position without competition,

e.g., through promotion, reassignment, reinstatement, transfer, change to lower grade, or the use of

a special appointing authority, based on meeting all qualification and eligibility requirements, e.g.,

education and/or experience, career ladder, time in grade, etc.

Open Opportunities: Open Opportunities is a government wide program offering professional

development opportunities to current federal employees and internships to students. The program

facilitates collaboration and knowledge sharing across the Federal Government.

Preference Eligible: A veteran, spouse, widow, or parents, who meets the definition provided in 5

U.S.C. § 2108. They are also afforded higher retention standing in the event of a reduction-in-force

(see 5 U.S.C. § 3502). Preference does not apply to in-service placement action such as promotions.

(Refer to OPM Vet Guide)

Priority Consideration: The referral and consideration of candidates who are entitled (based on

having something happen to them such as being affected by a reduction-in-force), before

considering other candidates.

Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPP): Employment-related activities that are banned in the

federal workforce because they violate the merit system through some form of employment

discrimination, retaliation, improper hiring practices, or failure to adhere to laws, rules, or

regulations that directly concern the merit system principles.

Promotion: Advancement from one grade to another within a pay schedule, or from the equivalent

of one grade to another from one pay schedule to another.

Qualification Standards. Applicants who do not meet the minimum qualification requirements for

the position are deemed “not qualified” and receive no further consideration.

Quality Ranking Factor (QRF): Job related KSAs, documented through job analysis, used in

rating and ranking all eligible candidates to distinguish the best qualified ones.

Rating and Ranking: The determination of best qualified candidates based on the degree to which

each candidate meets the quality ranking factors (KSAs) of the position. This process is completed

by a human resources specialist, subject matter expert, or an evaluation panel.

Reassignment: A change of an employee from one position to another, in the same grade, and in

the same agency.

Reemployment Priority List (RPL): The RPL is the mechanism agencies use to give

reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by a RIF or

who have fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than one year. The RPL must be

cleared before filling any competitive service position, regardless of the duration of the

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appointment, and whether the organization plans to make a temporary, term, or permanent

appointment.

Reduction in Force (RIF): A management process that may be required for such reasons as

reorganization, lack of work, shortage of funds, insufficient personnel ceiling, or the exercise of

certain reemployment or restoration rights. A furlough of more than 30 calendar days or of more

than 22 discontinuous calendar days is also a RIF.

Reinstatement: The reemployment of a former employee with competitive status.

Repromotion: Noncompetitive promotion or placement, permanent or temporary, of an employee

to a grade or FPL previously held on a permanent basis in the competitive service.

Schedule A: The Schedule A appointing authority for people with certain disabilities, 5 CFR

213.3102(u), is an excepted service authority that agencies can use to appoint individuals, including

veterans who have a psychiatric, intellectual or severe physical disability (5 CFR 213.3102(u)).

Selective Placement Factor (SPF): Mandatory KSAs that are essential for successful performance

in the position to be filled, in addition to the basic qualifications outlined in OPM Qualification

Standards. Applicants not meeting this factor are ineligible for further consideration. Selective

placement factors must be job related and their validity documented through job analysis and the

position description.

Special Selection Priority (SSP): A program that provides priority placement to eligible

employees under both CTAP and ICTAP. The CTAP program is administered by DOI and provides

special selection priority for displaced/surplus DOI employees within the local commuting area and

within the prescribed time frames indicated in the JOA. Each Federal agency administers the SSP

placement for displaced employees outside of their agency called ICTAP.

Specialized Experience: Experience defined in a JOA to provide detailed information about the

KSA's required to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related

to the position to be filled.

Status Applicant: Refers to those individuals who are current or former Federal civilian employees

who hold or held non-temporary appointments in the competitive service, not the excepted service.

Subject-Matter Expert (SME): A person with bona fide expert knowledge about what it takes to

do a particular job. Former and current first-level supervisors are normally good SMEs. Superior

incumbents in the same or very similar positions and other individuals may also be used as SMEs if

they have current and thorough knowledge of the job's requirements. An SME may provide input on

qualifications determinations if they are not the Selecting Official and if all applicant identifying

information has been removed. An SME who provides input on qualification determinations should

not be a panel member.

Time-to-Hire (T2H): T2H data is measured and reported in calendar days, as informed by the

OPM End-to-End Hiring Roadmap’s 80 day Hiring Model, which begins with the Hiring Need

Validated Date, based on each individual hiring action/request. T2H is counted for all hires, not just

hires from a Job Opportunity Announcement (JOA), with DOI reporting T2H from the time the

manager validates the need, until the tentative officer is accepted and until entrance on Duty (EOD).

Temporary Appointment: A time limited appointment not to exceed one year but could be less (5

CFR 316).

Temporary Promotion: A promotion to a higher graded position for a specified period of time to

accomplish project work, fill positions temporarily pending reorganization or downsizing, or meet

other temporary needs. Temporary promotions for more than 120 days are subject to competitive

procedures. Service during the previous 12 months in higher graded positions either by

noncompetitive temporary promotion or detail counts toward the 120-day limit. Temporary

promotions can be made in any increment up to a maximum period of 5 years. Temporary

31 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

promotions may be made permanent when such a possibility was publicized in the original

competition notice.

Term Appointment: A time limited appointment for at least one year but not to exceed four years

(5 CFR 316).

Time in Grade (TIG): TIG applies to advancement to a General Schedule position in the

competitive service by an individual who, within the previous 52 weeks, held a General Schedule

position under non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service in the executive

branch, unless excluded in 5 CFR 300.603.

Transfer: A change of an employee, without a break in service of one full workday, from a position

in one agency to a position in another agency.

Unclassified Duties: A set of duties and responsibilities that have not been officially classified, i.e.,

assigned a title, series, and grade level. A short statement of duties and responsibilities must

accompany the request for detail of an employee if a job description is not available.

USA Hire: An online assessment program designed by a team of Industrial/Organizational

psychologists at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to meet the hiring needs of

Government agencies.

USA Staffing: The Federal Government’s Talent Acquisition System, used to recruit, evaluate,

asses, certify, select, and onboard talent.

USAJOBS: The official job site of the United States Federal government. This website is the

centralized site for most Federal agencies to post JOA’s and for applicants to view the status of their

applications on-line.

Veterans Employment and Opportunities Act (VEOA): Amendment to 5 USC 3304 to allow

eligible veterans to compete for vacancies under agency merit promotion procedures. To receive

consideration under the VEOA appointing authority, a veteran must be a preference eligible or a

veteran separated after three or more years of continuous active service performed under honorable

conditions. A veteran, who is released under honorable conditions shortly before completing a

three-year tour of continuous active service, is also eligible for a VEOA appointment. A VEOA

eligible, separated 30 or less calendar days prior to completion of the three-year active duty service

requirement, is eligible to receive consideration for DOI vacancies.

Veterans Preference: A special privilege that entitles qualifying veterans or their family members

to certain advantages in consideration for Federal employment. Applicable only when referring

VRA applicants.

Veterans Recruitment Appointment (VRA): The VRA authority allows agencies can appoint an

eligible veteran without competition. The candidate does not have to be on a list of eligibles but

must meet the qualification requirements for the position. The VRA is an excepted appointment to a

competitive service position up to the GS-11 level (or equivalent). Positions filled through a VRA

can have promotion potential higher than GS-11. After two years of satisfactory service, the veteran

will be converted to a career conditional appointment in the competitive service. Many candidates

eligible for VRA appointments apply under Merit Promotion announcements.

Qualified: Eligible candidates who possess the KSAs which clearly exceed the minimum

qualifications requirements for the position, as determined by the crediting plan.

Quality Step Increase (QSI): A QSI is an additional within-grade increase (WGI) used to

recognize and reward General Schedule (GS) employees at any grade level who display outstanding

performance. A QSI has the effect of moving an employee through the GS pay range faster than by

periodic step increases alone.

Within grade Increases (WGI): Each General Schedule (GS) grade has 10 steps. Within-grade

increases (WGIs) or step increases are periodic increases in a GS employee's rate of basic pay from

32 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

one step of the grade of his or her position to the next higher step of that grade. For WGI purposes,

an employee's rate of basic pay is the rate of pay fixed by law or administrative action for the

position held by the employee before any deductions and exclusive of additional pay of any kind.

See Appendix H: General Schedule/Promotions/WIGI/QSI.

33 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX B: THE COMPETITIVE PROCESS OVERVIEW CHART

Proposed Action

Position

And

Competition

Required

Reassignment

At same grade under same

pay schedule

Position is one with known promotion

potential and employee will gain eligibility for

noncompetitive career promotion to grade

higher than previously held on a permanent

basis in the competitive service

Yes

Position is not one with known promotion

potential

Change to lower grade

Lower grade under same

pay schedule

Position is one with known promotion

potential and employees will gain eligibility

for noncompetitive career promotion to grade

higher than previously held on a permanent

basis in the competitive service

Yes

Position is not one with known promotion

potential

Assignment from one pay

schedule to

Higher representative rate

under a different pay

schedule

Yes

Same or lower

representative rate under

different pay schedule

Employee’s pay will be at same or lower rate,

but position is one with known promotion

potential

Yes

Assignment from one pay

schedule to (cont.)

Same or lower

representative rate under

different pay schedule

(cont.)

Employee’s pay will be set at same or lower

rate, but the position is not one with known

promotion potential

Reinstatement or transfer

At a higher grade than

previously held

Yes

At same or lower grade

than previously held

Position is one with known promotion

potential and the employee will gain eligibility

for noncompetitive career promotion to grade

higher than previously held on a permanent

basis in the competitive service

Yes

Position is not one with known promotion

potential

Detail

Same grade and is not one

with known promotion

potential

Detail is for any length

Higher grade or to

position of same grade

with known promotion

potential

The detail is for 120 days or less

The detail is for more than 120 days

Yes

Selection for training

leading to promotion

Successful completion of training is a

condition of eligibility for promotion

Yes

34 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

Promotion from position of

known promotion potential

Originally identified as

the target position to

which employee would

advance without

competition

Full performance level of

a career ladder

Competitive procedures were fully applied at

the time of placement into position of known

promotion potential and all competitors were

informed that selection for the entry position

could lead to promotion without further

competition

Promotion

Upgraded by

classification

Incumbent’s position upgraded without

significant change in duties and

responsibilities because of classification error

or new or revised standards

Incumbent’s position reconstituted into a

successor position with clearly and solely

identifiable duties of the former position and

there are no other employees serving in

similar or identical positions within the same

organization to whom the duties could have

been assigned

Incumbent’s position reconstituted into

successor position and position is not a clear

successor or there are other employees serving

in similar or identical positions within the

same organization to whom the duties could

have been assigned

Yes

Promotion

To position to which

employee was detailed for

training or evaluation

The employee was selected for detail under

full competitive procedures and all

competitors were informed that the detail

could lead to promotion without further

competition

Temporary promotion or

extension of temporary

promotion

Higher grade under same

pay schedule

Under a different pay

schedule when action is

processed as a promotion

or represents a promotion

under rules above

The temporary promotion is for 120 days or

less total in 12-month period

Conversion of temporary

promotion to permanent

promotion

The employee was selected for temporary

promotion under full competitive procedures

and all competitors were informed that the

temporary promotion could lead to permanent

without further competition

Promotion without time

limitation

Higher grade under same

pay schedule

Is not covered by promotion rules above

Yes

35 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX C: OPM CTAP & ICTAP JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (JOA)

LANGUAGE

The following two paragraphs are based on the language supplied by the OPM to explain

CTAP and ICTAP. This language should be used in all JOAs.

CTAP/ICTAP: CTAP/ICTAP provides placement assistance to permanent Federal employees

who are surplus, displaced, or involuntarily separated. Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP

eligibility must submit a copy of their most recent performance appraisal, proof of eligibility,

and most current SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with their application.

To be considered under CTAP/ICTAP, applicants must be well-qualified (i.e., meet the

minimum qualification requirements, including any selective placement factors; education,

and experience requirements), score at least 85 on the assessment questionnaire, and be able

to perform the duties of the position upon entry.

For information on CTAP and ICTAP visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-

government/unique-hiring-paths/federal-employees/career-transition/"

CTAP/ICTAP Documentation: If you are applying under CTAP or ICTAP, you MUST

submit proof of eligibility under 5 CFR 330.602(a) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP.

This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of your most recent performance rating,

and a copy of your most recent SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action) showing your

position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you

are applying as a CTAP or ICTAP eligible.

36 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX D: ACCRETION OF DUTIES ELIGBILITY CHECKLIST

5 CFR 300 & 335; GPPA, Ch. 14

Employee:

From (Current Title/Pay Plan/Series/Grade/Organization):

To (Proposed Title/Pay Plan/Series/Grade/Organization):

NONCOMPETITIVE PROMOTIONS BY ACCRETION OF DUTIES

Y/N

Review Item

Comments

Agency/bureau MPP allows promotion resulting from an employee’s position being classified at a higher grade because of additional

duties and responsibilities. [5 CFR 335.103(c)(3)(ii)]

Note: Although this regulatory citation does not refer to this type of promotion as an accretion of duties promotion, an employee’s

position being classified at a higher grade because of additional duties and responsibilities has often been referred to as an accretion

of duties promotion.

The employee continues to perform the same basic functions.

The additional duties and responsibilities are expected to be performed on a regular basis.

The new position has no known promotion potential.

There are no other employees in similar or identical positions within the immediate organization to whom the accreted duties could be

assigned.

The upgrading of the position does not involve the addition of any lead or supervisory duties to a formerly non-lead or non-supervisory

position.

Basis for noncompetitive promotion based on accretion of duties can be reconstructed (current and proposed PDs, evaluation

statements/justification; updated PD, signed OF-8 or equivalent, organizational charts, work samples, etc.)

Y/N

Review Item

Comments

Employee meets qualification requirements. (An employee whose position is upgraded as a result of a reclassification is considered to

meet the qualification requirements of the upgraded position, since he/she has been performing the higher-graded work. However,

employees must meet any licensure or certification requirements, as well as any minimum educational requirements.) [Qualification

Standards Operating Manual, Section 2E(3)(d)]

Employee meets time-in-grade. (GS positions only.) 5 CFR 300 Subpart F

The new position does not involve reclassification from a one-grade interval series to a two-grade interval series or across occupational

series.

There is no reduction-in-force or transfer of function being planned or implemented within the organization.

The complexity, range and/or level of difficulty in the duties and responsibilities of a position have gradually increased over a significant

period of time, i.e., approximately one year or longer usually as an evolutionary process and not specifically as a result of

management assigning new work or responsibilities, or the impact of the person in the job. The new duties comprise at least 25% of

the employee’s time on a regular basis, are based on recurring responsibilities that require a higher level of competency, and the

additional duties are considered major and grade-controlling, not merely new or different work.

The additional duties and responsibilities do not adversely affect another encumbered position, such as abolishing the position, eroding its

current grade or reducing its known promotion potential.

The promotion is not based on projected duties.

Does employee meet criteria for noncompetitive accretion of duties promotion eligibility?

Classifier: _________________________________________________ Date: ________________

37 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX E: SUPERVISORY CERTIFICATION—DUE WEIGHT FOR

PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS & AWARDS

SUPERVISORY CERTIFICATION:

DUE WEIGHT FOR PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS AND AWARDS

When reviewing merit promotion applicants, hiring officials have an obligation to consider

performance appraisals and awards for each merit promotion candidate on a used certificate and

must give due weight to these in the merit promotion selection process.

Performance appraisals are a tool for evaluating the candidate’s work habits and past performance

of duties and can assist you as the hiring official in determining how well the candidate will perform

in the particular job being filled. The more a candidate’s background reflects the knowledge, skills,

abilities, and competencies (through work experience, training related to the position being filled,

outside activities, performance appraisals, awards, and supplemental information) required for the

position to be filled the more credit he/she should be given.

This Supervisory Certification form must be completed and signed for each used certificate of

eligibles. Signing the form means you have reviewed any provided performance appraisal and/or

award documentation for each candidate on the certificate, and it was given due weight

consideration during your selection evaluation process. Considerations should be given to how

recent the completed performance appraisal, award, or comparable documentation of work

performance are, and how closely the duties mentioned relate to the position being filled.

CERTIFICATE NUMBER: ___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

In accordance with 5 CFR 335.103(b)(3), I have reviewed all provided performance

appraisal and/or award documentation and it was given due weight consideration

during my selection evaluation process.

____________________________________________________________________

Hiring Official Signature Date

38 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX F: DUE WEIGHT RECORDKEEPING

Vacancy

Identific

ation

Number

Due

Weight

Language

Included

in JOA Y/N

Position Title,

Series and Grade

Number of

Applicants

Number of

Qualified

Applicants

Number of

Applicants

Referred

Number of

Applicants

Due

Weight

Applied

Comments

39 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX G: GUIDANCE ON DEVISING CREDITING PLANS

A crediting plan (or rating schedule/evaluation plan) is a plan developed to rate and rank candidates

for a specific position. It is designed to measure the level at which eligible applicants possess the

job-related competencies that are necessary for successful performance in the job to be filled. This is

done through a review of the applicant's total education, training, experience, activities, awards,

supervisory appraisals, and background in relation to each competency identified. Validity refers to

the accuracy with which the crediting plan identifies the best-qualified candidates. Careful

construction of the crediting plan based on a job analysis and consistent application of the evaluation

criteria developed during that analysis are key elements in the preparation and use of a valid crediting

plan.

In accordance with Federal regulations (5 CFR 300.103 and 5 CFR 335.103; 29 USC 1607), a job

analysis must be conducted when filling a position. A job analysis is defined as a systematic

examination of a position to determine the duties and worker characteristics which are important for

successful job performance. The job analysis is used to document the relationship between the basic

duties and responsibilities and the knowledge, skills and abilities required to perform the duties and

responsibilities. To conduct a job analysis, the servicing personnel practitioner meets with the

selecting official and/or a subject matter expert. The following guides are useful for preparing the job

analysis:

(a) Office of Personnel Management Qualifications Standards Guidebook;

(b) Official position description;

(d) Functional statements;

(e) Organization charts;

(f) Occupational literature; and

(g) Performance standards.

Conducting the Job Analysis. The first step is to identify and record the major duties of the position.

Next to each duty, list the competencies necessary to perform those duties. A competency may

pertain to more than one duty. A competency may include:

(a) Knowledge - A body of information applied directly to the performance of a function. It

includes information about persons, places, facts, events, systems, ideas, theories, methods,

procedures, principles, concepts, or cases, that a person mentally possesses as a result of

formal education, training, or personal experience.

(b) Skill - A present, observable competence to perform a task with ease and proficiency. It

often requires the use of equipment, machinery, or tools and implies measurable

performance.

in an observable product. It is often broader and more abstract than skills or knowledge.

After identifying all the competencies and characteristics, you must further refine them.

(a) Which competencies can be rated from an application and which must be evaluated by

another method, e.g., interviews, reference checks, written tests, or assessment centers?

Generally, when developing a crediting plan, you should list as rating criteria only those

competencies that can be evaluated from an application or other supplementary written

information.

(b) Which are necessary to have entering on the job and which may be picked up at a later date

after a reasonable amount of training? Those necessary for immediate performance are

selective factors. They should not be so stringent that they disqualify all but those people

40 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

who may already be working in the office. Program knowledge can often be learned on the

job. They often are not appropriate selective factors for lower grade positions. Selective

factors should not be those things that can be learned in the position but something that must

be brought from outside, for example, knowledge of a language other than English.

the competencies rank against each other? (These considerations are important in order to

document weighting.) When determining its importance, you should consider the amount of

time a competency will be used, the difficulty/complexity of the competency, and the

consequences of performing the competency well or poorly. Importance can be stated by a

1, 2, 3 scale (Most important - least important) with documentation as to why that "rating"

was chosen. Once these determinations have been made, you should have left a reasonable

number of competencies (3-5) to use in an actual job analysis/crediting plan. Make sure

your competencies are properly described as they pertain to the position.

41 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX H: FAQ—GENERAL SCHEDULE (GS) PAY SYSTEM:

PROMOTIONS/WIGI/QSI

Question

Answer

OPM URL

What is the

General

Schedule

classification

and pay

system?

The General Schedule (GS) classification and pay system covers the majority of

civilian white-collar Federal employees in professional, technical,

administrative, and clerical positions. GS classification standards, qualifications,

pay structure, and related human resources policies (e.g. general staffing and

pay administration policies) are administered by the U.S. Office of Personnel

Management (OPM) on a Government wide basis.

The General Schedule has 15 grades - GS-1 (lowest) to GS-15 (highest). Each

grade has 10 step rates (steps 1-10) that are each worth approximately 3% of the

employee's salary. Within- grade step increases are based on an acceptable level

of performance and longevity (waiting periods of 1 year at steps 1-3, 2 years at

steps 4-6, and 3 years at steps 7-9). It normally takes 18 years to advance from

step 1 to step 10 within a single GS grade if the employee remains in that single

grade. However, employees with outstanding (or equivalent) performance

ratings may be considered for additional quality step increases (maximum of one

per year).

http://www.opm.gov/pol

icy- data-oversight/pay-

leave/pay-

systems/general-

schedule/

How do

General

Schedule

Promotions

work?

GS employees may advance to higher grades by promotion at certain intervals

(generally after at least a year), as determined by OPM regulations and

qualification standards and DOI policies, up to the full promotion potential

advertised in the job announcement. After that, competition under merit system

principles is necessary to advance to a higher GS grade. Generally, a GS

promotion increase is equal to at least two steps at the GS grade immediately

before promotion to the higher GS grade.

http://www.opm.gov/pol

icy- data-oversight/pay-

leave/pay-

systems/general-

schedule/

What are GS

Pay

Adjustments,

Locality Pay,

and Special

Rates?

The GS base pay schedule is usually adjusted annually each January with an

across-the-board pay increase on nationwide changes in the cost of wages and

salaries of private industry workers. Most GS employees are also entitled to

locality pay, which is geographic-base percentage rate that reflects pay levels

for non-Federal workers in certain geographic areas as determined by surveys

conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

GS employees on foreign areas are not eligible for locality pay. Special Rates

are salary rates higher than the normal GS rates. These rates are approved by

OPM based on serious difficulties in staffing certain occupations at GS grade

levels in certain geographic areas.

http://www.opm.gov/pol

icy- data-oversight/pay-

leave/pay-

systems/general-

schedule/

What are

within-

grade

increases

or step

increases?

Within-grade increases (WGIs) or step increases are periodic increases in a

General Schedule (GS) employee's rate of basic pay from one step of the grade

of his or her position to the next higher step of that grade. For WGI purposes, an

employee's rate of basic pay is the rate of pay fixed by law or administrative

action for the position held by the employee before any deductions and

exclusive of additional pay of any kind.

https://www.opm.gov/po

licy-data-oversight/pay-

leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-

increases/

Who in the GS

can earn WGIs?

Employees who occupy permanent positions earn WGIs upon meeting the

following three requirements established by law: (1) The employee's performance

must be at an acceptable level of competence. To meet this, an employee's most

recent performance rating of record must be at least Level 3 ("Fully Successful"

or equivalent). (2) The employee must have completed the required waiting

period for advancement to the next higher step. (3) The employee must not have

received an "equivalent increase" in pay during the waiting period.

https://www.opm.gov/pol

icy-data-oversight/pay-

leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-

increases/

42 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

What is

meant by

Permanen

t Position

for WGI

purposes?

Permanent position means a position filled by an employee whose

appointment is not designated as temporary and does not have a definite

time limitation of 1 year of less. Permanent position includes a position

to which an employee is promoted on a temporary or term

basis for at least 1 year.

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-increases/

What are the

required WGI

waiting

periods and

when do they

begin?

Step 1 to Step 2: 52 weeks of creditable service at the Step 1. Step

2 to Step 3: 52 weeks of creditable service at the Step 2. Step 3 to

Step 4: 52 weeks of creditable service at the Step 3. Step 4 to Step

5: 104 weeks of creditable service at Step 4. Step 5 to Step 6: 104

weeks of creditable service at the Step 5. Step 6 to Step 7: 104

weeks of creditable service at the Step 6. Step 7 to Step 8: 156

weeks of creditable service at the Step 7. Step 8 to Step 9: 156

weeks of creditable service at the Step 8. Step 9 to Step 10: 156

weeks of creditable service at the Step 9.

A WGI waiting period begins upon (1) first appointment in the

Federal service, (2) receiving an "equivalent increase," or (3)

after a period of nonpay status and/or a break in service in excess

of 52 calendar weeks.

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-increases/

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-increases/

What is

considered an

"equivalent

increase" for

employees?

An equivalent increase is considered to occur at the time of any

of the following personnel actions:

A within-grade increase, excluding

(1) a quality step increase granted under 5 CFR part 531, subpart E,

(2) an interim WGI if that increase is later terminated under 5 CFR

531.414;

A promotion (permanent or temporary) to a higher grade, including the

promotion of an employee receiving a retained rate under 5 CFR

359.705 or 5 CFR part 536 that does not result in a pay increase, but

excluding (1) a temporary promotion if, at the end of that temporary

promotion, the employee is returned to the grade from which promoted,

or (2) a promotion to a higher-graded supervisory or managerial

position when the employee does not satisfactorily complete a

probationary period established under 5 U.S.C. 3321(a)(2) and is

returned to a position at the lower grade held before the promotion;

Application of the maximum payable rate rule in 5 CFR 531.221 that

results in a higher step rate within the employee's GS grade; or

Application of the Superior qualifications and special needs pay-

setting authority in 5 CFR 531.212 that results in a higher step rate

within the employee's GS grade.

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-increases/

What is the

effective date

of a WGI?

A WGI is effective on the first day of the first pay period

beginning on or after the completion of the required waiting

period (5 U.S.C. 5335 and 5 CFR 531.412).

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/within-grade-increases/

43 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

What is a

quality step

increase (QSI)

and how does

it affect a

within- grade

increase?

A QSI is a faster-than-normal WGI used to reward employees at

any GS grade level who display high quality performance. To be

eligible, employees must: (1) be below step 10 of their grade

level; (2) receive the highest rating available on their performance

appraisal; (3) demonstrated sustained performance of high

quality; and (4) have not received a QSI within the preceding 52

consecutive calendar weeks. A QSI does not affect the timing of

an employee's next regular WGI unless the QSI places the

employee in step 4 or step 7 of his or her grade. In these cases,

the employee becomes subject to the full waiting period for the

new step--i.e., 104 or 156 weeks, and the time an employee has

already waited counts towards the next increase. The employee

receives the full benefit of receiving a WGI at an earlier date and

has not lost any time creditable towards his or her next WGI.

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

administration/fact-

sheets/quality-step-increase/

What is the

Federal Wage

System?

The Federal Wage System (FWS) was developed to make the pay

of Federal blue-collar workers comparable to prevailing private

sector rates in each local wage area.

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

systems/federal-wage-

system/facts-about-the-

federal-wage-system/

How does the

FWS compare

to the GS pay

system?

There are a number of differences between the FWS and the GS

in terms of occupational coverage, geographic coverage, and pay

adjustment cycles because separate laws and regulations

authorize different surveys and methodologies. GS locality

payments, which are authorized under the Federal Employees Pay

Comparability Act of 1990, are based on a comparison of Federal

and Non-Federal pay. Each January, the law provides for GS

employees to receive a general across the board increase based on

the 12 month increase (if any) in the Employment Cost Index,

plus an increase, if warranted based on the local cost of labor for

white-collar occupations in each of the 32 GS locality pay areas.

On the other hand, the FWS operates under carefully regulated

procedures OPM has developed cooperatively with Federal

agencies and labor organizations over a 30-year period. These

procedures are not static but have been continually updated based

on the advice of the Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory

Committee.

https://www.opm.gov/policy-

data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-

systems/federal-wage-

system/facts-about-the-

federal-wage-system/

44 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

APPENDIX I: FEDERAL WAGE PAY SYSTEM (FWS)

The Federal Wage System (FWS) is a uniform pay-setting system that covers Federal appropriated

fund and non-appropriated fund blue-collar employees who are paid by the hour. FWS positions

are craft, trade, and laboring positions and include several different pay plans (WS, WG, WL, etc.).

The system's goal is to make sure that Federal trade, craft, and laboring employees within a local

wage area who perform the same duties receive the same rate of pay. The FWS includes 130

appropriated fund and 118 non-appropriated fund local wage areas. Successful labor-management

partnership is the hallmark of the FWS, with labor organizations involved in all phases of

administering the pay system.

Under this uniform pay system Pay will be the same as the pay of other similar Federal jobs in the

wage area, and

the pay will be in line with pay for similar private sector jobs in the wage area.

To review more information on the FWS Pay System, please see OPM’s Fact Sheet: Federal Wage

System and the FWS Overview

45 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

References

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

5 CFR 213 Excepted Service

5 CFR 300 Employment (General) including TIG (Subpart F)

5 CFR 302 Employment in the Excepted Service

5 CFR 307 Veterans Recruitment Appointments

5 CFR 310 Employment of Relatives

5 CFR 315 Career and Career-Conditional Employment

5 CFR 316 Temporary and Term Employment

5 CFR 330 Recruitment, Selection, and Placement (General)

5 CFR 335 Promotion and Internal Placement

5 CFR 338 Qualification Requirements (General)

5 CFR 340 Other Than Full-Time Career Employment

5 CFR 351 Reduction in Force

5 CFR 572 Agency Authority

5 CFR 720 Affirmative Employment Programs

DOI Departmental Manuals (DM) and Personnel Bulletins (PB)

370 DM 300 Employment (General)

370 DM 315 Career and Career-Conditional Employment

370 DM 330 Recruitment, Selection and Placement

370 DM 335 Promotion and Internal Placement, DOI Merit Promotion Plan

370 DM 338 Qualification Requirements

370 DM 430 Performance Management System

370 DM 771 Administrative Grievance Procedures

PB 99-6: Travel, Transportation, and Relocation Expenses

PB 11-06: Career Transition Assistance Plan

Career Transition Assistance Plan Memorandum, August 4, 2010

PB 01-03: Career and Career-Conditional Employment—Probation

PB 06-01: Recruitment, Relocation, and Retention Incentives

PB 17-13: Excepted Service Policy

PB 18-03: Position Management and Position Classification Policy and Handbook

PB 20-09: Time to Hire Reporting Requirements

PB 20-14: Merit Promotion Shared Certificate Policy

PCS and Travel Regulations

Title 5 United States Code (U.S.C.)

U.S.C. Ch. 33 Examination, Selection, and Placement

U.S.C. 2108a Treatment of Certain Individuals (veterans and preference eligibles)

U.S.C. 2301 Merit System Principles

U.S.C. 2302 Prohibited Personnel Practices

46 | Merit Promotion & Staffing Policy Personnel Handbook

U.S.C. 3502 Order of Retention

U.S.C. 3304 Competitive service

Office of Personnel Management

Job Analysis and Job Assessment Tools

Qualifications and Classification Standards

Human Capital Management—Hiring Reform

End to End Hiring Initiative

Time to Hire (T2H) Reporting Requirements

The Employee’s Guide to Career Transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Types of Appointments

Guide to Data Standards

Miscellaneous

Presidential Memorandum—Improving the Federal Recruitment & Hiring Process