Secretary

Full Job Description

This Secretary position is in the Associate Director for Patient/Nursing Services in the Executive Office department at the VA Maine Healthcare System (Togus).

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/09/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

For a GS-6 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service.

An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement.

In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.

To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

Examples of qualifying specialized experience include, but are not limited to: Screens visitors and telephone calls determines nature of call/visit, refers them to the appropriate staff or takes a message; maintains office records and manuals, makes changes/revisions as necessary to conform to changing requirements/standards; assures appropriate information and documents flow, maintains a set of files in appropriate office system which allows for retrieval for all work stations; maintains office diaries/ suspense systems; initiates renewal for review dates on memorandum/circulars and forwards copies to appropriate personnel for revision/update; procures information, organize files and retrieve reports, correspondence and numerical data for use in preparing reports, briefings and presentations; manages travel arrangements including financial planning, reservations, and itinerary; serves as resource person for inquiries concerning travel allowances and regulations; serves as correspondence liaison; manages and/or prepares responses as appropriate, notating actions needed/necessary and follows up.

(NOTE: The specialized experience must be well-documented on your resume) Physical Demands: The work is sedentary with some walking and standing.

No special physical demands are required to perform the work.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Major Duties:

The primary purpose of this position is to provide administrative support to the Associate Director for Patient/Nursing Services in the Executive Office at the Maine VA Healthcare System.

Duties include, but are not limited to: Screens visitors and telephone calls determines nature of call/visit, refers them to the appropriate staff or takes a message.

Receives, reviews/reads and distributes mail. Coordinates and schedules appointments.

Attends meeting when required, takes minutes, summarizes, distributes copies to attendees and keeps diary controls of follow up actions.

Maintains office records and manuals, makes changes/revisions as necessary to conform to changing requirements/standards. Responds to requests for information regarding functions and policies.

Oversees and instructs new clerical personnel in the performance of their duties and coordinates additional training for new employees.

Serves as education liaison for the office and prepares, collects and tracks education and training requests for all employees.

Assures appropriate information and documents flow, maintains a set of files in appropriate office system which allows for retrieval for all work stations.

Assures staff members have the necessary equipment/supplies and information/education for implementation/compliance.

Maintains office diaries/suspense systems; initiates renewal for review dates on memorandum/circulars and forwards copies to appropriate personnel for revision/update.

Procures information, organize files and retrieve reports, correspondence and numerical data for use in preparing reports, briefings and presentations.

Manages travel arrangements including financial planning, reservations, and itinerary; serves as resource person for inquiries concerning travel allowances and regulations.

Serves as correspondence liaison; manages and/or prepares responses as appropriate, notating actions needed/necessary and follows up.

Treats customers (i.e., veterans, their representatives, visitors and staff) in a courteous, tactful and respectful manner. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

EST Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Secretary/PD402-04139-O Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.

When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year).

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA.

Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement). Notifications: This position is not a Bargaining Unit position.

This position is covered by locality-based comparability pay. Veterans' preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees.

Interchange Agreements with Other Merit System: Employees who occupy medical or medical-related positions and were appointed under 38 U.S.C. 4701

or

[formerly 38 U.S.C. 4104

and

] must be serving in a full-time position without time limit and have served continuously for at least one year in this other merit system to be eligible to convert to the Title 5 System.

Some exceptions to this rule may apply if you have previously acquired tenure under a Title 5 appointment.

Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action).

The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted).

In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held.