Social Worker

Summary

This position is NOT eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP).

This Supervisory Social Worker supervises professional staff in multiple major care lines: Acute inpatient Medicine/Surgery/Critical, Outpatient ambulatory, and specialty areas such as the Emergency Room (ER), Clinical Command Center (C3), Clinical Resource Hub (CRH), Survivors Assistance Memorial Support (SAMS), and Outpatient Surgery Service (OSS) at the Palo Alto Division of the VA Palo Alto Health Care System.

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Duties

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The incumbent supervises a group of employees performing work at the GS-12 level and below, including advanced practice social workers and social work program coordinators and GS-11s who can practice at the independent level. The incumbent provides administrative, technical, and clinical supervision necessary for accomplishing the work of the units.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNED DUTIES INCLUDES BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO:

• The incumbent performs the administrative and personnel management function relative to staff supervised.
• Incumbent will have established guidelines and performance expectations for staff, clearly communicated through the formal employee performance management system.
• Observes workers' performance; demonstrates and conducts work performance critiques.
• Incumbent administratively supervises employees to accomplish the work of the organization unit. Incumbent exercises supervisor authorities and responsibilities involving work assignment and review, as well as the administrative and personnel management functions relative to the staff supervised.
• In addition, the incumbent provides clinical supervision for social work licensure for social workers seeking state licensure through individual and group sessions.
• The GS-13 Supervisory Social Worker incumbent is responsible to the Chief, Social Work Service, but practices independently, exercising initiative and independent judgment in day-to-day activities.
• Supervision/consultation is of an administrative and professional nature, with the Supervisory Social Worker (e.g., Assistant Chief/Chief of Social Work Service), providing guidelines as to the general policy and direction of SWS, the incumbent coordinates.
• In unusual and/or complex administrative and clinical problems, the incumbent initiates consultation with the Chief as well as with other authoritative resources at the Medical Center, such as Regional Counsel, Business Services, Fiscal, Office of Quality, Safety and Value, and Human Resource Management Services.
• Completes BLS quarterly and remains up-to-date on certification.
• Other Duties as assigned.

Work Schedule : M-F 8:00 am - 4:30 pm or as determined by the supervisor.

Compressed/Flexible : This may be authorized at the supervisor's discretion.

Telework : This may be authorized at the supervisor's discretion.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # : 10518-F

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID-compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial 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 the 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 trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements : The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Education: Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for a master's degree in social work. Verification of the degree can be made by going to to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of Social Work.
• Licensure: Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to
• Failure to Obtain License or Certification: In all cases, social workers must actively pursue meeting state prerequisites for licensure or certification starting from the date of their appointment. Failure to become licensed or certified within the prescribed amount of time will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment.
• Loss of Licensure or Certification: Once licensed or certified, social workers must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment. Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment.
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations : In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Supervisory Social Worker, GS-13

• Experience/Education: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills in a specialty area or in administration, demonstrating progressively more professional competency and judgment. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience.
• Licensure/Certification: Individuals assigned as supervisory social workers must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level and must be able to provide supervision for licensure.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
  • Ability to independently organize work, set priorities, and meet multiple deadlines.
  • Skill in a range of supervisory duties, which includes clinical supervision, consultation, negotiation with other departments, and quality improvement.
  • Ability to ensure provision of clinical social work services by supervised social workers.
  • Ability to delegate authority, manage priorities, coordinate work, and follow up on pending issues to complete duties in an accurate and timely fashion.
  • Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems, develop and implement solutions that result in efficient operations, and use data effectively to manage workload, quality, performance, and productivity within the service.
  • Ability to provide staff training and development.
• Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Supervisory social workers at the GS-13 grade level typically supervise professional and non-professional staff. They are responsible for the professional and administrative management of an area in a social work service, in a care/product line, or across multiple sites (e.g., multi-division facilities and CBOCs). Incumbent may also provide direct clinical services.]

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is the GS-13.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38 and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits employers from requesting an applicant's criminal history before accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.