Human Resources Specialist (Employee Benefits)
Federal Maritime Commission — Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Job description
The FMC is the federal agency responsible for regulating the U.S. international ocean transportation system for the benefit of U.S. exporters, importers, and the U.S. consumer. The FMC is dedicated to ensuring a competitive and dependable international ocean transportation system that supports the U.S. economy and safeguards the public from unfair or deceptive practices. Join the FMC and be part of a mission-driven organization during an important and exciting time in the maritime industry.
Duties:
As a Human Resources Specialist (Employee Benefits) at the GS-0201-13 level, the incumbent will be part of the Office of Human Resources, Office of the Managing Director, Federal Maritime Commission. The incumbent This position is responsible for administering the employee benefits program, which includes retirement, health insurance, life insurance, thrift savings plans, and Workers' Compensation Program. As an HR Specialist (Employee Benefits), if selected, you will: Develops and conducts new employee orientation and participates in onboarding. Ensures that new employees are appropriately entered on the agency rolls, counseled, and that all necessary actions related to benefits, obtaining information from prior Federal employment, employee rights and responsibilities, pay, etc. have been completed. Ensures proper completion of forms and follow up on due dates. Provides customized expert counseling and guidance to all levels of employees on matters of a highly sensitive/serious nature, relating to the areas of retirement, which can include retirement (CSRS/FERS), health, life, and long-term care insurance, thrift savings plans, Flexible Spending Accounts, death and survivor benefits, debt and overpayments, Work Life, workers' compensation, telework, and leave administration, as well as the use of the Employee Personal Page (EPP) self-servicing system. Counsels employees concerning service credit payments and post-1956 military service deposits. Assists employees with applications for retirement and verifies credibility of service. Provides employees and survivors of deceased employees estimates of expected benefits. Assists managers in making proper referrals to external resources for employees with highly personal and/or controversial problems, e.g., contested disability retirements. Identifies appropriate sources of training for FMC employees in the areas of benefits, retirement, and financial literacy. Arranges and/or conducts training to be presented to employees and develops metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the training. Provides advice on benefits procedures, forms, eligibility requirements, and coverage. Computes benefits and processes actions to completion, advising appropriate agency staff of pending actions. Coordinates open seasons and enrollment periods for benefits and prepares and distributes guidance and relevant materials. Organizes the annual FMC Employee Benefits Fair held during open season. Prepares retirement estimates utilizing an automated retirement system (such as FedHR Navigator); prepares retirement packages, ensuring accuracy/completeness, and submits to NFC for processing. Prepares the FMC's Annual Employee Financial Education Plan for submission to OPM. Identifies strategies to help the Commission improve employee financial literacy and retirement readiness.
Location: Washington, District of Columbia
Education:
Substitution of education may not be used in lieu of specialized experience for this grade level.
How you will be evaluated:
Once the application process is complete, your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are minimally qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the Occupational Questionnaire. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If you are found to be among the top candidates, you will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration. Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Competencies: Accountability Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision-Making Flexibility Influencing/Negotiating Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. The USA Hire Assessment includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Referral: If you are among the top qualified candidates, your application may be referred to a selecting official for consideration. You may be required to participate in a selection interview. We will not reimburse costs related to the interview such as travel to and from the interview site. If you are a displaced or surplus Federal employee (eligible for the Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP)), you must receive a score of 80 or better to be rated as "well qualified" to receive special selection priority.
Other information:
You will be expected to report to the duty station listed on this announcement. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional similar vacancies across the FMC. If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document that you do not have in electronic form, please refer to the agency contact information. Suitability Statement: If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment. Shared Certificates Statement: Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for the FMC to share your application with other FMC positions and/or Federal agencies for similar positions. Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA): To be eligible for a VEOA appointment under Merit Promotion procedures, the veteran must be a preference eligible or a veteran separated after 3 years or more of continuous active service performed under honorable conditions. Interagency Career Transition Assistance Programs: This program applies to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: 1) meet ICTAP eligibility criteria; 2) be rated well-qualified for the position (Well qualified is defined as possessing the type and quality of experience that exceeds the positions minimum qualifications); and 3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your ICTAP eligibility. For more information: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. All newly appointed employees to the competitive (or excepted) service are subject to a probationary (or trial) period. During this time, your performance, conduct, and suitability for continued employment will be evaluated. You will not automatically convert to permanent status at the end of the probationary (or trial) period. Your supervisor must affirmatively determine that continued employment is in the best interest of the Federal service. If no certification is made before the probationary (or trial) period ends, your appointment will be terminated. You are encouraged to actively engage with your supervisor, seek feedback, and understand role expectations. Additional guidance and support will be provided during onboarding. All employees of the Federal government are subject to the conflict of interest statutes and regulations including the Standards of Ethical Conduct that govern activities with outside organizations and reporting financial holdings. This position may require the incumbent to complete a confidential financial disclosure report within 30 days of appointment.
How to apply:
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, and assessments and submit all required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date (07/08/2026) of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about two (2) hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. 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.