Cook

About the role

This position is located in the Nutrition and Food Service of the Margaret C. Corbin VA Campus, in Manhattan, NY. The primary purpose of the Cook, WG-6, is to prepare nutritious, high quality meals for service to the Veterans.

The work of this position is involved in the preparation of regular or special diet foods and meals. This includes cooking meats, poultry, fish, shellfish, and vegetables and making soups, gravies, sauces, desserts, and other foods.

What you will do

• Food Preparation Works independently to prepare and cook a variety of items including regular and therapeutic diet (diabetic, low sodium, low protein, gluten dessert items.
• Follows menus, production sheets and recipes to prepare items in the quantity needed.
• Cooks hot cereals, concentrated or dehydrated soups, sauces, gravies.
• Grills eggs, hamburgers, meat patties, pancakes, French toast; makes cold sandwich fillings and assembles a variety of sandwiches.
• Uses a variety of methods to prepare meats, fish, and poultry including broiling, roasting, baking, frying, boiling, steaming, stewing, braising, and grilling.
• Slices meat items by hand confirming to specific size requirements or weight specifications.
• Prepares fresh, canned, and frozen vegetables; bakes frozen potatoes, pre-made cookie dough, muffin batters.
• Prepares and heats convenience items; prepares pureed foods and adjusts consistency with thickeners.
• Washes, peels and cuts fruits and vegetables by hand or machine.
• Assembles and mixes salad ingredients and dessert items including gelatin molds and fruit crisps.
• Plans cooking processes to produce complete meals on time and at the proper temperature which may require coordination of cooking several items with different cooking times.
• Attractively presents and garnishes food.
• Makes a variety of desserts such as cobblers, brownies, cookies and pastries.
• Washes, peels, chops, grinds, pares, cuts, slices, dices, purees, dredges, flours, breads items.
• Weighs, measures, assembles ingredients for regular and modified diets.
• Combines ingredients according to recipes to produce quality food items, minimizing preparation time and food waste.
• Pans foods for bulk re-thermalization according to recipe guidelines and production guidelines.
• Covers, dates, and stores leftovers according to established local policies/procedures.
• Operates a variety of kitchen equipment: oven, combi oven/steamer, grill, slicer, mixer, steam kettles, blender, food processor, scale; follows safety procedures regarding the operation of equipment.
• Gathers test data to assist management in making purchasing and menu pricing decisions.
• Food Safety/Sanitation Follows sanitary food handling procedures; covers, labels and dates food items; utilize or discard ingredients by expiration date.
• Disassembles and assembles component parts and accessories for cleaning.
• Cleans, stores and maintains all kitchen utensils, equipment and work areas practicing a "clean as you go" concept.
• Cleans and sanitizes assigned work areas: worktables, sinks, blast chillers, racks, carts.
• Achieves certification in food safety such as Serv-Safe and is able to apply knowledge of food safety, food temperatures, etc. Operates dish machine; checks detergent level and water temperature before washing and sanitizing cook's equipment.
• Checks equipment to make sure it is free of food residue and soap.
• Cleans ovens, combi oven/steamer, slicer, mixer, steam kettles, grill daily.
• Collects trash, sorts and prepares items for recycling.
• Cleans floors, walls, shelves as assigned.
• Performs deep cleaning tasks such as cleaning walk-in refrigerators and freezers.
• May operate powered floor cleaning or steam equipment for deep cleaning.
• Prepares food production worksheets from computerized recipe files.
• Food Storage Receives, rotates and stores perishable and non-perishable items according to service policies.
• Removes outdated or damaged goods from stock.
• Labels all food items with contents and dates per labeling guidelines.
• Weighs, measures, and assembles ingredients accurately and according to standardized recipes or requisitions.
• Monitor and maintain proper spacing of food products from floor, ceiling and shelving to ensure adequate air flow and spacing of products for optimal food safety.
• Monitor for signs of pest notifying the appropriate individual as determined by your local policy.
• Maintain accurate food inventories.
• Provides assistance to supervisor or higher grade worker in ordering food in accordance with daily and weekly menu requirements.
• Maintains strict security of all areas.
• Work Schedule: Sunday-Thursday, 11:00am-7:30pm Position Description Title/PD#: Cook/PD99818S Physical Requirements: Is subject to continuous standing, walking, frequent bending, reaching, pushing, and pulling.
• Lifts or moves objects weighing up to 40 lbs. unassisted and occasionally lifts or moves objects weighing more than 40 lbs. with assistance of a lifting device or other workers.
• Manipulates cumbersome, heavy objects, such as washing stainless steel mixing bowls, pushing heavy carts on casters or operating heavy equipment.
• Possesses manual dexterity to operate equipment and to handle sharp knives and blades safely.
• Utilizes eye-hand coordination and the ability to concentrate and react quickly to serve food and operate equipment.

Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment.
• Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Services Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 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.
• 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-year probationary 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 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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Education

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

How you will be evaluated

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC.

WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.

Documents you must provide

• Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (Schedule A) Disability Letter (VA) License Other (1) PCS Orders Professional Certification Resume Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript Please review the above list(s) to ensure you have included all necessary documents required for your application.
• Not every applicant will require the same documents, therefore it is the applicants responsibility to ensure that their application package includes all necessary documents to determine qualifications and eligibility for appointment, such as a copy of your SF-50, transcript, ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).You will not be contacted for additional information.
• Applicants will be deemed ineligible if supporting documentation is not submitted.
• Veterans' Preference: Since the Direct-Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply.
• Qualified veterans will, however, be given full consideration for this position.
• Applications are accepted online.
• Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application.

What to expect next

After the vacancy announcement closes, applicants are evaluated to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email.

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.

Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted.

HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties.

VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities.

HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities.

HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.

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 well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at ***

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.

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.