Contract Specialist

Summary

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM) provide the infrastructure and support that enables the U.S. Department of Labor to perform its mission. OASAM provides leadership and support for information technology, human resources management, procurement, business operations, safety and health, space management, civil rights, emergency management, security, budget, and performance.

Duties

Available offices for this position are located in Washington DC; Atlanta, GA; Boston, MA; New York City, NY; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; and Philadelphia, PA. The advertised salary reflects the pay range for the above locations. Upon selection, the salary will be set in accordance with the selectee's assigned duty location. The selectee(s) will report to their assigned DOL office location on a regular basis and be eligible for telework as determined by agency policy. This is not a remote position. The GS-11 Contract Specialist is responsible for contracting actions within contracting divisions, actively engaged in all phases and activities related to the procurement process. Duties include, but are not limited to the following: Perform the full range of pre/post-award functions using primarily negotiation procedures for procurements for complex service contracts that are highly specialized, new or innovative, where guidelines are normally not directly applicable. Responsible for providing and coordinating activities for all pre/post award functions for the acquisition of supplies and services critical to the mission of the Department; actively participates in all phases of the acquisition process. Receive requisitions and determine the appropriate method of procurement; draft determinations and findings; aid in the preparation of justifications and approvals for sole source actions; assemble solicitation documents; conduct market research to determine the availability of products and services. Select the type of contract to solicit based on factors such as potential for price competition, ability to establish a realistic price through price analysis, ability to realistically estimate cost, complexity of the requirement, and urgency of the requirement. Use judgment and ingenuity in interpreting the intent of broad or conflicting guidelines and precedents, developing applications to specific areas of work when guidance is inadequate to deal with the problem at hand. Identify problems and bring to the attention of the supervisor and provides feedback on special and on-going projects and assignments, as necessary. Use initiative, creativity, and judgment in selecting areas for review, interpreting data, and studying trends and patterns in the business environment, including forecasting price trends and economic factors that may affect a given acquisition, Make decisions based on analysis of alternatives, adaptation or modification of procedures, or resolution of incomplete or conflicting technical, program, or contractor data. Discuss and analyze complex procurement issues, resolve disagreements between competing interests, and persuade others of the proper course of action for resolving problems. Has contacts with a wide variety of high-level DOL employees and contractor personnel, including program management, contracting, audit, technical, and legal staff within various government agencies, to discuss and analyze complex procurement issues. Meet frequently with business management, accounting, and technical personnel from private industry in a structured environment to negotiate procurements of extensive services and/or construction projects. Negotiate complex issues in contacts with lateral and higher-level personnel within the government and with representatives of industry, working to resolve disagreements between competing interests and persuade others of the proper course of action. Prepare contract award documents, These documents include formal contracts, BPAs, Task Orders, Delivery Orders, and Purchase Orders. Prepare Negotiations Memorandums; Award Decision Memorandums; Price Fair and Reasonableness Determination; Preliminary Notice to Exercise a Contract. Draft determinations and findings, and aids in the preparation of justifications and approvals for sole source actions. Assemble solicitation documents, Request for Proposals; Request for Quotes; Combined Synopsis /Solicitation; and conducts market research to determine the availability of products and services.

Qualifications and evaluation

Applicants meeting the eligibility and minimum qualification requirements will be referred to the selecting official. Rating/ranking and veterans' preference does not apply to this position. You may preview application questions for this vacancy here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13037619 The information you provide may be verified by a review of your paid, unpaid, volunteer, as it demonstrates the competencies or skills required for the position to be filled. Your evaluation may include an interview, reference checks, or other assessment conducted by HR specialists, subject matter experts, or panel members and may include other assessment tools (ex. interview, structured interview, written test, work sample, etc.). SME Resume Panel Review Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will review your resume to assess your technical qualifications based on the competencies listed below. Applicants who meet the required qualifications will advance to the next stage of the hiring process. For each below competency, SME(s) will provide a rating of 0-Not Applicable, 1-Awareness, 2-Basic, 3-Intermediate, 4-Advanced, or 5-Expert based on the content of your resume. Evaluation Factors (Competencies) - All qualified applicants will be evaluated on the following key competencies: Contracting/Procurement Oral Communication Problem Solving Writing Under the authority of direct hire recruitment, evaluation factors are a tool to gauge one's proficiency in relevant competencies, but will not be used to determine who will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. All candidates who have provided a complete application, and meet the minimum qualification requirements will be referred for consideration. Click here for Evaluation details. INFORMATION FOR ICTAP/CTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP/CTAP, you must meet the basic and minimum qualification requirements for this position to receive consideration. Be sure to review the eligibility questions to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.

Education

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service. If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum course work requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

How to apply

Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Application Limits: Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the date the application limit was reached or the vacancy closing date, whichever occurs first, to receive consideration. Important - Save your information before the 30 minute system timeout! For help, go to USAJOBS Help Center. STEP 1 - Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents. For each employment period, include start/end month & year and note full-time or part-time (if part-time, include # of hours worked per week) otherwise, your application may be considered incomplete. NOTE: In alignment with the Presidential Memorandum titled Merit Hiring Plan, dated May 29, 2025, applicants may only submit a resume limited to two (2) pages. Only the résumé uploaded under the 'Resume" document type in USAJOBS will be reviewed. If the resume submitted exceeds two (2) pages, the application will be deemed ineligible for further consideration. STEP 2 - Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS). Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the job title and then click the Apply button. For questions about the vacancy, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Proceed through the steps noted at the top of the USAJOBS page. You will be able to select a resume and documents from your USAJOBS Account that you can submit as a package as part of your DOL application. In the final step, once you have certified your application, click the Continue to agency site button. STEP 3 - Complete the 2nd part of the application process (DOL). On the Department of Labor (DOL) page, create a DOL Account if you have not already and click Apply to this vacancy. Continue through the progress steps at the top of the DOL page. The 2nd progress step is where you answer the vacancy-specific questions. The 3rd progress step Documents is where you submit the required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the Required Documents section of this vacancy. STEP 4 - On the Review and Submit step, verify each section of your application is complete and correct. In order to submit your application, you must have a check mark next to each section listed. If there is an X, return to the appropriate section and follow the prompts. When it is ready for submission, certify your application and click the Submit Application button. STEP 5 - Edit Application by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy then Update Application. If the vacancy closes on the date the application limit is reached, applicants will no longer be able to edit their applications. To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: Visit https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/howto/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. For more detailed information on applying for positions with DOL click here to view the U.S. Department of Labor, How to Apply website.

Required documents

The following documents must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the vacancy closing date. Resumes: Required: provide a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one from your profile. To receive full consideration for relevant and specialized experience, please list the month, year, and number of work hours worked for the experience listed on your resume. We also suggest that you preview the vacancy questions and confirm that your resume supports your question responses. Displaced Employee Placement Documents - Only required if requesting priority consideration under CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. Unofficial Transcript(s) (in English): You MUST submit all applicable academic transcripts demonstrating that you meet the qualifying educational requirements (ex. BA/BS, MA, JD, Ph.D., etc.). If specific coursework is required to qualify, you must supply an unofficial transcript from each academic institution in which the required courses were taken in order to receive credit. You may upload your unofficial transcript(s) as one document with a maximum size limit of 5 MB. Most recent performance appraisal/evaluation signed and dated within 18 months is requested by the agency but will not disqualify candidates if not submitted. If not submitted during the application process, one may/will be requested at the time of the interview if the opportunity is extended. *In most cases, ICTAP/CTAP applicants must submit this document - please see ICTAP/CTAP links below for more details. Optional: Veterans Documents (if applicable): Veterans preference does not apply but if you wish to make us aware of your veteran status as a 5-point (TP) preference eligible, you must submit a copy of your DD214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. Your DD 214 must show the type of discharge and dates of active duty. To claim 10-point (CP/CPS, XP) preference, you must submit a copy of your DD214 and the proof of entitlement of this preference, which is normally an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs certifying to the present existence of the service-connected disability and indicating the percentage of your disability. In addition, a Standard Form (SF-15) should be included, but is not required. (For active-duty service members expecting honorable or general discharge or release within 120 days, click Active Duty). For more information, go to Feds Hire Vets - Veterans Preference. NOTE: The OFFICIAL Transcript(s) MUST BE RECEIVED, if you are selected, and prior to receiving the firm offer with a start date. Cover Letters are not mandatory and will not be used to verify experience but may be submitted. Reference the Education Section for College Transcript and Evaluation of Foreign Education. Do not upload password-protected documents. Applicants selected for employment who are not current DOL employees will be required to provide proof of citizenship, and the E-Verify system will be used to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a one year probation period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: - your performance and conduct; - the needs and interests of the agency; - whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and - whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probation period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Additional information

This position is being filled through the Direct Hire Authority. Traditional rating and ranking of applications does NOT apply. Veterans' preference does not apply. The mission of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to protect the welfare of workers and job seekers, improve working conditions, expand high-quality employment opportunities, and assure work-related benefits and rights for all workers. Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION, REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES As a condition of employment, all personnel must undergo a background investigation for access to DOL facilities, systems, information and/or classified materials before they can enter on duty: BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION This position is inside the bargaining unit. If the duty location is within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, the position will be included in the Local 12, AFGE bargaining unit. If the duty location is outside the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, the position will be included in the NCFLL bargaining unit. Click here for Career Ladder Promotion Information Non-Supervisory Financial Disclosure: This position is subject to the confidential financial disclosure requirements of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-521). Therefore, if selected, you will be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) to determine if a conflict or an appearance of a conflict exists between your financial interest(s) and your prospective position with DOL. This information will be required annually. Click here for Telework Position Information. This is not a remote work position. The selectee will report to an assigned DOL office location on a regular basis and is eligible for participation in telework as determined by management in accordance with DOL policy. Based on agency needs, additional positions may be filled using this vacancy. The Fair Chance Act (FCA) prohibits Federal agencies from requesting an applicant's criminal history information before the agency makes a conditional offer of employment. If you believe a DOL employee has violated your rights under the FCA, you may file a complaint of the alleged violation following our agency's complaint process Guidelines for Reporting Violations of the Fair Chance Act.Note: The FCA does not apply to some positions specified under the Act, such as law enforcement or national security positions. All Department of Labor employees are subject to the provisions of the Drug-Free Workplace Program under Executive Order 12564 and Public Law 100-71.