Secretary (OA)

Summary The Secretary serves as an integral member of the Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Service at the Atlanta VA Health Care System. Reporting directly to the Administrative Officer, this position is responsible for providing a wide range of secretarial and administrative support functions. The Secretary plays a key role in ensuring efficient operations by managing clerical tasks, coordinating communications, and delivering essential assistance to support daily activities. Responsibilities Responsible for personnel administration (i.e. serving as backup Primary Timekeeper, attending meetings as a representative of Pathology & Laboratory Service.) Receive incoming calls from internal and external customers. Maintain calendars for the Associate Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief Chief of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine and Administrative Officer (i.e. scheduling appointments, meetings, committees, conference calls, and webinars). Maintains calendar for Laboratory Conference room for the facility. Schedule and review work activities performed in an office, including data reporting, data support and record keeping. Maintain office compliance regarding regulations, polices, and guidelines as established. Reviews and directs incoming communication documentation. Prepares, reviews and routes correspondence and communication flow including that of a sensitive nature and informs Primary Care leadership when there are issues of concern. Perform office automation work on VA furnished equipment. Orders office supplies from logistics for Laboratory staff. Submits results to the scanning department to be entered in the patient's medical records. Performs Pathology, Histology and Cytology Data entry duties completing grosses, finals, and accessioning. Utilize a range of software equipment and software programs (i.e. copier, fax, telephone, Word, Excel, VATAS, VISTA, CPRS, Outlook, etc.). Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm. Work Schedule is subject to change based on agency need. Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD081160 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements 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 You may be required to serve a probationary period 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 dentification 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) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 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: 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 probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/21/2026. 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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Administrative secretary/assistant work to executive management in a health care setting Prioritizing, coordinating support and completing tasks within established timeframes Use of office automation equipment such as computers, telephones, conference equipment, copiers, and fax machines Following complex administrative procedures Experience developing and installing office procedures, policies and practices Use of computer programs, such as Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, and Outlook) Preparation of reports, correspondence, memoranda, and other forms of written communication Interfacing with outside organizations, referring visitors and callers to appropriate staff Instruct others on procedural requirements of a job Serving as a liaison to convey information Assembling/preparing information for a variety of meetings, reports and correspondence at the executive level 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; religions; 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. It occasionally requires lifting and carrying light objects such as files, books, and papers. No special physical qualifications are required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education There is no educational substitution at this grade level. 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. Additional Information Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to 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. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. 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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. 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. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at