Human Resources Specialist (Employee Benefits)

Recent college graduates who have, within the previous two years, completed a qualifying Bachelors or Graduate degree. Veterans who have completed a bachelor's or graduate degree and were unable to apply within two years of receiving their degree due to military service obligation of at least 4 years, may apply within two years of their discharge from uniformed service. This announcement will be utilized to fill positions through the College Graduate Hiring Authority.

Duties

Joining the Customs and Border Protection, Office of Human Resources Management, Retirement and Benefits Branch (RABAS) will allow you to use your expertise to assist as a subject matter expert in a variety of assignments involving technical support on employee benefits covering the following areas: Federal Employee Health Benefits; Federal Employee Group Life Insurance; Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and Federal
Employees Retirement System (FERS), Thrift Savings Plan (TSP); and death benefits.

This position starts at a salary of $49,960.00 (GS-07, Step 1) to $79,443.00 (GS-09, Step 10) with promotion potential to $115,213 (GS-12 Step 10).

Salary: Salary listed reflects the rest of U.S. scale and, if applicable, will be adjusted to meet the locality pay or cost of living expenses of the duty location upon selection.

Major duties may include but are not limited to:

• Interpreting and explaining to employees the relationship of the Federal retirement and insurance programs to other retirement and insurance programs (Social Security, military provisions).
• Assisting in reviewing benefits and retirement documents. Reviewing and certifying beneficiary forms and FEHB/FEGLI enrollment forms. Working with higher grade Specialist in developing answers to general benefits questions.
• Assisting in counseling employees about their federal benefits using a wide range of HR rules and regulations and OPM policies and fills in the areas where a higher-grade specialist maybe be not available.
• Provides LEO (Law Enforcement Officers) and CBPO (Customs and Border Protection Officers) certifications for former CBP employees.
• Reviewing previous retirement system determinations in accordance with the Federal Erroneous Corrections Coverage Act (FERCCA) provisions and takes necessary steps to provide the employee with information needed to make an informed decision and provides corrective actions to finalize the process

RequirementsConditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this position
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered with Selective Service
• Primary U.S. residency for at least three of the last five years (additional details below)
• You may be required to pass a background investigation
• CBP follows the DHS Drug-Free Workplace Plan for drug testing procedures
• As an employee of CBP, you will be joining a workforce that is dedicated to accomplishing our mission while maintaining the trust of our Nation by strictly adhering to all government ethics standards. Your conduct will be subject to the ethics rules applicable to all Executive Branch employees, and to CBP employees specifically, as well as the criminal conflict of interest statutes. Once you enter on duty, these rules include obtaining approval for outside employment or business activity, to ensure such employment or business activity is not prohibited and does not interfere or conflict with performance of your official duties. Please review further details via the following link.
• DHS uses E-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify including your rights and responsibilities.
• Financial Disclosure is required.
• Bargaining Unit: This position is not covered under the bargaining unit.

Qualifications

Experience: You qualify for the GS-07 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Assisting in reviewing benefits and retirement documents.
• Counseling employees about their federal benefits using a wide range of HR rules and regulations.
• Providing guidance to human resources staff regarding retirement and benefits processing and procedures.

Education Substitution: GS-07: Successful completion of one year of full-time graduate education from an accredited college or university may substitute for the experience required at this level. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. Check with your school to determine how many credit hours comprise a year of graduate education. If that information is not available, use 18 semester or 27 quarter hours.

OR

A bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement (SAA)may also substitute for the experience required. It is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average (i.e., GPA 3.0 or higher of a possible 4.0, excluding pass/fail credits. Pass/fail credits cannot be more than 10% of total credits), or (3) honor society membership. Review Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) to see if you qualify under this provision. Please see www.opm.gov for additional information.

Experience: You qualify for the GS-09 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Applying Human Resources methods and principles to assist with resolving moderately complex problems.
• Interpreting initial benefits and/ or entitlements on eligibility requirement for such benefits as the Federal Employee Health Benefit (FEHB) and Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) to employees, supervisors and human resources staff.
• Assisting with the development and training for management and employees.

Education Substitution: GS-09: A master's degree or equivalent graduate degree, 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, a J.D. or an LL.B. degree from an accredited college or university may substitute for experience required at this level. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. Check with your school to determine how many credit hours comprise two years of graduate education. If that information is not available, use 36 semester hours or 54 quarter hours.

Combining Experience and Education: Combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for the grade levels specified in the table, and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. More information on this qualification standard is located here.

NOTE: Your resume must explicitly indicate how you meet this requirement, otherwise you will be found ineligible. Please see the "Required Documents" section below for additional resume requirements.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

You must meet all qualification requirements, including education if applicable to this position, subject to verification at any stage of the application process by 04/15/2025.